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

Short Answer Questions

1. Who is the only person Molly says she loves?

2. How long has Herald Loomis been looking for his wife?

3. What is Molly's attitude toward men?

4. What does Seth remind Loomis of?

5. Who does Bynum say Loomis belonged to?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout the play, there are forces that bind people and forces that tear people apart. Discuss these forces.

1) What types of things bind people to each other and to places and lives in the play? Are these things good or bad, or are some good and some bad? How do negative binding forces (like the chains of slavery) affect the other things that bind people together or to elements of their lives?

2) What types of things tear people apart in the play? Are these things good or bad, or are some good and some bad? What role might tearing apart have in building identity?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the role of women in the play.

1) Discuss Molly's attitude toward sex, money, and freedom. Where does this attitude come from? Is Molly healthier or happier than the other women in the play?

2) Discuss Mattie's reliance on a man in the play. Why does she need a relationship and children?

3) Discuss Bertha's role in the play. Why is Bertha always shown in the kitchen, cooking? What role does she have in her marriage with Seth? Is their relationship a healthy one?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss one's responsibility to one's self and to others in the play.

1) What responsibility does Martha have to Herald after he is enslaved? Is she wrong to leave, instead of waiting for him indefinitely?

2) What responsibility does Herald have toward Martha? Does he fulfill his responsibilities?

3) Is it more important in the play to live for one's self, as Molly seems to, or to live for others, as Mattie seems to?

(see the answer keys)

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