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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where does Gerry Evans sign up to join the Spanish army?

2. What does Gerry Evans say they need to check if the aerial is all right but the radio still won't work?

3. What work do Rose and Agnes do after they leave Ballybeg?

4. Why can't Vera McLaughlin work in the new factory?

5. Which of the sisters would care that Austin Morgan is getting married?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is the Ryangan harvest festival described by Uncle Jack similar to the festival of Lughansa?

2. When Uncle Jack hears wedding bells, he asks if it is one of his sisters who is getting married. Who is actually marrying?

3. How does Rose trick Agnes and get away from her?

4. Why might Agnes have believed Rose could not get work in the factory?

5. Who does Maggie forget to count when she is calculating people they must feed for dinner?

6. What has Rose forgotten when she comes home from her meeting with Danny Bradley?

7. What phrase did Kate hit upon that comforted her as she tried to understand Uncle Jack's changed attitude toward life since his stay in Ryanda?

8. The recruiter tells Gerry Evans that he is invaluable to the brigade because he is a master at disguising himself. How does this revelation relate to the false impression he has given to Gerry Evans?

9. What is it that Kate asks Uncle Jack to promise?

10. What does it tell you about Gerry Evans that he says he will check the ignition and sparking plugs of the radio?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Dancing is a central metaphor in this play, and Michael ends the play with a monologue about what dance meant to him. Compare and contrast the effects of dance on him as a boy, when he is frightened by the wild, strange behavior of his family members as they dance, with his reflections on dance at the end of the play.

Essay Topic 2

The playwright, Brian Friel, uses the character Michael to tell the audience the eventual fate of the characters before the play itself is finished. How did knowing where the characters' actions would lead them affect you as a reader? Did you find it an effective dramatic device?

Essay Topic 3

Analyze what it means to you that young Michael's kites have faces that are cruel and grinning, and that they are not able to fly. Why do you think the playwright put this element into his play? What do these kites tell you about young Michael's feelings toward the women in his family? Toward life in general?

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