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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Emperor Jones feel when he realizes his part in the vision he sees in the fourth forest scene?
(a) Powerful.
(b) Repentant.
(c) Desperate.
(d) Vengeful.

2. What atmosphere does the drumming create during the fourth forest scene?
(a) Meditative calm.
(b) Blood-boiling desperation.
(c) Disorder and confusion.
(d) Artful beauty.

3. What is the irony at the end of Emperor Jones?
(a) Jones swore that he could only be killed by a silver bullet, but he died of self-inflicted injuries and exhaustion.
(b) Jones had always claimed to be immortal, but the natives threatened his life and he showed them that he was afraid of death.
(c) Jones manipulated the natives by saying that he could only be killed by a silver bullet, but they killed him with a silver bullet after all.
(d) Jones had run away from imprisonment in America, and then he died of his freedom in the West Indies.

4. Whose experience is Emperor Jones envisioning in the fifth forest scene?
(a) Jeff's.
(b) His own.
(c) Smithers'.
(d) His ancestors'.

5. What do we learn from the interaction between what Emperor Jones says and what the figures say in the vision Emperor Jones sees in the fifth forest scene?
(a) That he is sorry for his sins.
(b) That he is still in charge of the natives.
(c) That he will continue to run until he dies.
(d) That he is in the same position as the slaves.

6. Which answer represents the setting when the last scene opens?
(a) Noon.
(b) Dawn.
(c) Sunset.
(d) Middle of the night.

7. Which term describes the development of the plot of Emperor Jones?
(a) Bildungsroman.
(b) Tragedy.
(c) Comedy.
(d) Kuntzleroman.

8. How have the natives triumphed by the end of the play?
(a) They have mastered the art of stone carving.
(b) They have overcome their superstitious beliefs.
(c) They have escaped from voodoo by killing the witch doctor.
(d) They have killed a tyrant.

9. Where does Lem say he got his silver bullet?
(a) The natives bought it from traders.
(b) The natives recovered it from the forest.
(c) The natives stole it from Emperor Jones.
(d) The natives melted down money.

10. How have the tom-tom beats changed at the end of the sixth forest scene?
(a) They are louder and faster than ever.
(b) They are starting to get further away.
(c) They are muffled now.
(d) They are essentially a constant wall of sound.

11. What does the other figure in the sixth forest scene with Emperor Jones intend to do?
(a) Make a sacrifice to a crocodile.
(b) Slit Emperor Jones' throat with a razor.
(c) Take Emperor Jones home and take care of him.
(d) Return Emperor Jones to a village in Africa.

12. Where is the tom-tom coming from in the last scene?
(a) Very close by.
(b) Right on stage.
(c) Back at the palace.
(d) Off at a distance.

13. How are the figures arranged in Emperor Jones' vision in the fifth forest scene?
(a) Gathered around the altar.
(b) Bounding back and forth across the stage.
(c) Dancing in a circle.
(d) Arranged in symmetrical rows.

14. What can we gather from the fact that Emperor Jones does not shoot anyone in the apparition in the fifth forest scene?
(a) He is strong enough that he can escape without a gun.
(b) The figures' despair is ongoing.
(c) He is saving his last silver bullet for himself.
(d) He is so weak that he cannot shoot anyone.

15. The fact that Emperor Jones is killed by a silver bullet made from money is a form of what?
(a) Foreshadowing.
(b) Epiphany.
(c) Catharsis.
(d) Irony.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does the beat of the tom-tom change at the end of Act 1, Scene 5?

2. Emperor Jones sees a scene in Act 1 Scene 5. Where does one of the figures in his vision gesture for him to stand?

3. Which musical term describes the change in the sound of the tom-tom at the end of the fourth forest scene?

4. How do the figures move in the vision Emperor Jones sees in the fifth forest scene?

5. What is the significance of Emperor Jones dispelling his final vision?

(see the answer keys)

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