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

Short Answer Questions

1. What future does Hedda see for Lovborg?

2. What is the reason that Brack gives Hedda for telling her everything that happened to Lovborg the previous evening?

3. At Brack's party, what information does Lovborg withhold?

4. In Act 3, after Brack leaves, what does Hedda do?

5. What happens to the manuscript when Tesman leaves?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the play HEDDA GABLER, all the characters surround the title character and in their own way add to the entrapment that she feels. Write an essay detailing the trap that Hedda ultimately feels she must escape at any cost, and the role each of the surrounding characters played in the trap.

Part 1: What role did society play in creating the situation that Hedda finds herself in? What other paths were available to her that she could have chosen that would not have left her feeling so limited?

Part 2: What role did Hedda play in creating the trap for herself? Does she have weaknesses that keep her from happiness? What attributes might she have that would have kept her from feeling this way?

Part 3: All the other characters in the play, including her unborn child, aid in tightening the trap around Hedda. Discuss how the actions of each of the other characters affect Hedda and cause her to feel constantly more trapped.

Essay Topic 2

The play HEDDA GABLER was first published in 1890. Write an essay about the world as it was then.

Part 1: What was the society and culture like that first received the play HEDDA GABLER? What, in his society, was like ours and what was different? What aspects have changed but still show influence after all these years?

Part 2: What aspects of his culture influenced Henrik Ibsen to write the play HEDDA GABLER? What message was he trying to send with his plays? Was there a part of society that he felt was unjust and reacted to in his work?

Part 3: How well was his work and his message received? Did most of his society accept and agree with his message or was it controversial? Why?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay about suicide.

Part 1: Discuss different views of someone taking their own life. Has it ever been acceptable or condoned? Do different cultures see it differently? In what circumstances has it been seen as acceptable or even advisable?

Part 2: What are your own views on someone taking their own life? Is there any circumstance that it is understandable or ok?

Part 3: In the play HEDDA GABLER, is Hedda's final act a liberating act of courage or a cowardly avoidance? How does Hedda see it?

(see the answer keys)

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