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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. During his first soliloquy, what does Hamlet say about his mother?
(a) She forgot his father too quickly.
(b) She has too much power over the country.
(c) She is grieving too much for his father.
(d) She is responsible for his father's death.

2. What country did the late King go to battle against?
(a) Denmark.
(b) England.
(c) Norway.
(d) France.

3. Once Hamlet follows the ghost, what do Hamlet's friends decide to do?
(a) Follow Hamlet and the ghost.
(b) Get Hamlet to see a doctor.
(c) Tell the King about Hamlet's strange behavior.
(d) Leave Hamlet alone with the ghost.

4. When the ghost first speaks to Hamlet, how does it describe its experience?
(a) It walks all the time, hoping someone will set it free.
(b) It walks at night and is tortured by day.
(c) It is tortured and burned in a fire all the time.
(d) It walks at night and is frozen in a block of ice during the day.

5. What does Hamlet ask Horatio to do during the play's performance?
(a) Watch Polonius and see if he reacts to the play.
(b) Watch Claudius and see if he reacts to the play.
(c) Help Hamlet kill Claudius as the play is performed.
(d) Watch Gertrude and see if she reacts to the play.

6. What does Hamlet say when he first hears about the ghost?
(a) He wants it to leave him alone.
(b) He thinks Horatio is inventing it to distract him.
(c) He does not believe it exists.
(d) He wants to talk to it.

7. Claudius says his crime "hath the primal eldest curse upon't." What does he mean?
(a) Stealing your brother's wife is an especially bad crime.
(b) Killing the king is an especially bad crime.
(c) Killing your oldest brother is an especially bad crime.
(d) A brother's murder is an especially bad crime.

8. When the play shows a king being poisoned, how does the current king, Claudius, react?
(a) He is bored and does not seem to care.
(b) He is uneasy and makes a joke about it.
(c) He is upset and leaves before the play ends.
(d) He is angry and asks Hamlet if he is making an accusation.

9. Once left alone on stage in Act 3, Scene 3, what does Cladius express guilt about?
(a) Having Hamlet killed.
(b) Marrying Gertrude.
(c) Hamlet going crazy.
(d) Killing his brother.

10. Who is Ophelia in love with?
(a) Hamlet.
(b) Laertes.
(c) Horatio.
(d) Polonius.

11. On his way to see his mother in Act 3, Scene 3, Hamlet finds Claudius. What does Hamlet decide not to do in that scene?
(a) Kill him.
(b) Avoid him.
(c) Trick him into admitting his guilt.
(d) Argue with him.

12. After welcoming them to Elsinore, what does Claudius ask Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to do?
(a) Convince Fortinbras not to attack Denmark.
(b) Cheer Hamlet up and find out what is wrong with him.
(c) Convince Hamlet to go back to school.
(d) Watch Hamlet and make sure he does not hurt anyone.

13. After the play, Claudius meets with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to discuss Hamlet's condition. Are Rosencrantz and Guildenstern more sympathetic to Claudius, Hamlet, or someone else?
(a) Claudius.
(b) Hamlet.
(c) Gertrude.
(d) Ophelia.

14. In Act 3, Scene 1, what does Hamlet tell Ophelia about his feelings for her?
(a) He says he does not know if he ever loved her.
(b) He says he is still in love with her.
(c) He says he never loved her.
(d) He says both that he loved and he did not love her.

15. In Act 1, Scene 2, what two events does Claudius describe?
(a) His coronation and the war with Norway.
(b) The war that killed the last king and the upcoming marriage of his nephew.
(c) His brother's wedding and the birth of his nephew.
(d) His brother's death and his own marriage to Gertrude.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who does the ghost in Act 1, Scene 1 look like?

2. Who is Ophelia?

3. At the beginning of Act 2, what does Polonius ask Reynaldo to find out?

4. At the end of Act 1, Scene 1, what does Horatio say he intends to do?

5. What does Horatio say the ghost might do to Hamlet?

(see the answer keys)

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