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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. According to Shaw, what can people do to get rid of their low-class accents?
(a) They must be trained by a phonetics expert.
(b) People should not try to get rid of their low-class accents; they should be proud of the way they speak.
(c) It cannot be done in real life.
(d) They should imitate people who speak proper English.

2. Which of the following is among Liza's treasured possessions?
(a) A picture of her deceased mother.
(b) A book of Shakespeare's plays.
(c) A fashionable dress that she has never worn.
(d) A birdcage.

3. Who is Alexander Melville Bell?
(a) A London patriarch.
(b) A playwright who was a rival of Shaw's.
(c) The inventor of the telephone.
(d) A phonetics expert who invented a phonetic spelling called Visible Speech.

4. What does Higgins tempt Liza with just as she is about to leave?
(a) A purse full of coins.
(b) New clothes.
(c) A diamond ring.
(d) A chocolate.

5. What happened to Liza's parents?
(a) Her father is gone and her stepfather beats her.
(b) They are too poor to take care of her, so she lives on her own.
(c) She has no parents; they are dead.
(d) She has no mother, and her father and stepmother kicked her out.

6. What type of person does Shaw indicate is the hero of Pygmalion?
(a) A professor of English literatures specializing in Shakespeare and Milton.
(b) An energetic enthusiast who supports language reform.
(c) A low-class person who cannot speak the language properly.
(d) A multilinguist and expert in Latinate languages.

7. What does Liza want to do after her bath?
(a) Change back into her old clothes since she feels uncomfortable this way.
(b) Start her lessons immediately.
(c) Have a serious talk with her father.
(d) Go out and show off her new clothes.

8. Which of the following describes Liza's home?
(a) A small, shabby room in an alley.
(b) She is homeless and sleeps in an alley.
(c) A dirty shack she shares with her whole family.
(d) She sleeps in a suburban kitchen with a fireplace.

9. What is one of Shaw's purposes in writing this play?
(a) To make people aware of the social inequalities in England.
(b) To entertain people and make them forget their worries for another day.
(c) To let people know of the existence of phoneticians and how important they are.
(d) To encourage people to value all types of accents in English.

10. How does Liza feel about the bedroom she'll be staying in?
(a) She says it makes her feel like a duchess.
(b) She's amazed by its luxurious furnishings.
(c) She's not used to sleeping in a bed and it seems very strange to her.
(d) She thinks it's too good and clean for the likes of her.

11. How is Henry Higgins described?
(a) He is elderly and distinguished, with the appearance of a scholar.
(b) He is thin and feeble, but has a strong scientific mind.
(c) He is young and handsome, but sloppy in his dress.
(d) He is about forty years old, strong and energetic.

12. Which of the following does NOT describe the Flower Girl's appearance?
(a) Her hair needs to be brushed.
(b) She is very clean and neat.
(c) She has bad teeth.
(d) She is wearing a black sailor hat.

13. Which is true of Pygmalion at the time Shaw wrote his Preface?
(a) It is extremely successful on stage, and he hopes to make a movie of it.
(b) It is extremely successful in Europe, and he hopes to make it so in America.
(c) It is extremely successful in America, but not in Europe.
(d) It is extremely successful on stage and screen all over North America and Europe.

14. On what basis do some English people despise others?
(a) Their level of education.
(b) Their accents or dialects of English.
(c) Their socioeconomic class.
(d) Whether they are foreign or native-born citizens.

15. What does Doolittle promise to do with the money?
(a) Buy something for his wife.
(b) Spend it all immediately on a drinking spree.
(c) Save it and use it wisely.
(d) Keep it for Liza.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Shaw try to do for Sweet?

2. Why does Liza become upset with Higgins?

3. Why is Clara annoyed with her mother?

4. Of what does Mrs. Pearce warn Higgins?

5. What does Sweet think of the Pitman system?

(see the answer keys)

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