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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. After he runs into Leo outside the Strand, what does Toby discover Leo has left behind?

2. What is Toby's reaction after Leo's anger during their reunion?

3. What is implied about the reason Leo is in such a hurry when he crashes into Toby outside the Strand?

4. What regret does Toby's play make Eric feel?

5. Who was the first person to die in the farmhouse?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Henry's fear during the AIDS epidemic end up robbing him of his ability to truly love another man?

2. What leads Toby to write his second play?

3. How does Leo learn that he is HIV-positive?

4. Who was Edward Carpenter, and how did he inspire Maurice?

5. What memory is Toby recreating when he pressures Leo into attending the parties during their summer trip, and how does the reader know this?

6. How does Leo react when he first sees Toby at the farmhouse?

7. When Toby and Leo are reunited, how does Toby initially react to Leo's desperate situation, and what changes Toby's attitude?

8. What admission about Leo does Henry make, and why does Eric find it so upsetting?

9. How did the move to a new state and new school impact Toby's self-image, and why?

10. What regrets did Michael's mother have about his death, and what did she do to ease her conscience?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does Act One create a contrast between Eric and Toby that foreshadows the events of the remainder of the play? Write an essay that establishes how Act One characterizes both men and demonstrates how these characterizations create contrast. Then, trace how subsequent developments in the play arise naturally from this contrast. Finally, tie your observations to some thematic claim that this play seems to be making. Defend your assertions with evidence drawn from throughout the play.

Essay Topic 2

What claims is The Inheritance making about cultural appropriation from the gay community? How does this relate to the part of the play's plot in which Henry and his children try to keep Eric from inheriting what Walter wanted to bequeath him? Why do Eric's and Walter's individual personalities, ages, and beliefs matter in understanding this relationship? How does the class status of Henry and his children mimic the power dynamic between the larger community and the gay community? Write an essay in which you show how the plot regarding the farmhouse illuminates the text's concerns regarding cultural appropriation. Support your assertions with evidence drawn from throughout the text.

Essay Topic 3

How effectively does Lopez use dramatic tension to keep the reader engaged? As you read the play, do you feel invested in knowing how obstacles will be overcome and whether the characters will achieve their goals? Do you eagerly push forward to find answers to questions that Lopez creates and see how characters will resolve their conflicts? How does the metatheatrical nature of the play interact with its dramatic tension? How do the commentary and actions of the Young Men and Morgan heighten or diffuse dramatic tension? Does the play's humor heighten or diffuse its dramatic tension? Choose a single act of the play, from either of the play's two parts, and write an essay that explicates and evaluates Lopez's use of dramatic tension in that act.

(see the answer keys)

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