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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. Who claims to be above all other people in the world? ("The Death of Pilate")

2. Who is the last character in "Everyman" to speak?

3. How many "wits" does Everyman possess?

4. What does Everyman offer Death to "defer this matter till another day"?

5. From what disease does Caesar suffer? ("The Death of Pilate")

Short Essay Questions

1. In what ways is Christ's descent into hell dramatized?

2. Why does the editor state that the liturgical playwrights "made little use of the Passion theme"?

3. Who does Jesus tell to be the first one to punish the woman accused of adultery?

4. According to the prologue to "Everyman", what is the treatise of the play?

5. According to the introduction, what does the York "Resurrection" represent?

6. Why does the editor state that The N. Town Cycle of "The Women Taken in Adultery" is the best of all cycles?

7. What purpose does God's opening soliloquy have in "The Judgment"?

8. Why does Veronica stop Caesar from killing Pilate himself?

9. Why does the editor state that the dialogue in the N.Town cycle of "The Women Taken in Adultery" "rings true"?

10. What does the editor state will help a reader understand "Everyman" better?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Choose one of the "Medieval Miracle Plays" and compare and contrast the message that it contains to a similar message in Everyman. What are both texts trying to say? How do both texts deliver the message? Given that both texts obviously convey the same message, or it would not have been chosen for this essay, how do the texts differ? How are they similar?

Essay Topic 2

In "Everyman", everyman asks many of his "qualities" to accompany him upon his journey. Why were each of his "qualities" disqualified from accompanying him? Which quality was able to accompany him on his journey? Why?

Essay Topic 3

In "Everyman", readers learn that it is only through Good Deeds that one may enter the gates of Heaven. What other of the medieval plays contains the same message? How does the play mirror the message in "Everyman"?

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