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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. Garcin wishes he had been placed in a room full of what?

2. Who says that s/he is "rotten to the core"?

3. How did Garcin's wife die?

4. Estelle says she likes men with what?

5. What was Estelle's lover's name?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do you think of Inez's attempt to woo Estelle by calling her by the romantic names her lovers used to use?

2. Do you think that Garcin really would prefer physical torture? Which would you prefer--physical or mental anguish of this kind?

3. What is Inez guilty of?

4. Why did Garcin flee to Mexico, and what does it have to do with cowardice?

5. Why do you think that Inez tries to pull Garcin off Estelle?

6. Why do you think that Estelle is flattered by Inez attention, even after she knows that Inez is being cruel?

7. Although both Inez and Garcin pressure Estelle into telling them why she is in the room, at the end of the section, why is Estelle only angry with Inez and not Garcin?

8. How is Inez's volunteering to be the mirror for Estelle symbolic?

9. In this section of the play, Estelle asks Garcin to hold her. Why?

10. How does Garcin feel when Estelle tells him that it does not matter if he is a coward as long as he kisses well?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How one character punishes another is of primary importance in this play. The reasons why these three are each other's perfect torturers are revealed in the action of the play and in the things the characters say to each other. Chose one of the following and write an essay:

A) How Inez is the best torturer for Garcin.

B) How Garcin is the best torturer for Estelle.

C) How Estelle is the best torturer for Inez.

Be sure to explain the specific ways in which the character tortured his/her fellow character, and why their particular ways of inflicting pain were sure to be the most painful. In addition, briefly state which one would be the best torturer for you and why.

Essay Topic 2

Because these characters are dead, issues of death and dying strongly affect the way they behave. Describe how each character died, using as many specifics as you can remember from the play. After you describe how each character died, chose one of the following below and write one paragraph:

A) In your opinion, which death was the "worst" or most unfortunate, and why?

B) Describe which death you feel was most appropriate, that is: which character deserved to die the way they did, and why?

Essay Topic 3

This play relies heavily on foreshadowing. Objects in the room and things the characters say about themselves help prime the audience to understand the layers of denial and misrepresentation through which these characters journey. Chose one of the following options and write an essay that uses specific examples from the text:

A) Describe how Sartre uses the paper knife as a foreshadowing tool. In what context does it first appear, and what does it represent later in the play?

B) Explain how the way Estelle behaves in the beginning prefigures the truths we find out about her. Be sure to be specific.

C) Explain how the setting and set decorations as a whole foreshadow what will happen at the end of the play.

(see the answer keys)

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