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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. Charlotte comes out of the bedroom where she has been getting dressed. They all sit down to have ______.

2. Charlotte enters the room wearing ________ and looking generally disheveled.

3. At the beginning of Scene 3 Max asks Annie how _________ is doing.

4. Henry comments on the fact that so many of the greats had names that started with ______.

5. As Charlotte begins to leave, Max asks her ________.

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Henry fetch a cricket bat in order to explain the process of writing to Annie?

2. What does Annie say when Max accuses her of the action that he accuses her of in #17?

3. What does Max confront Annie with during this scene, saying that it's Henry's and should be given back?

4. What does Annie happily comment on as she hurries out the door during the next scene?

5. What is Henry doing at the start of the second scene of the first act of the play?

6. What shows that Annie and Billy have some emotional and sexual distance between them?

7. What is playing in the background as Annie and Max are talking with each other during this scene of the play?

8. What is happening at the end of the film, though, at the beginning of this scene?

9. What is the topic of small talk discussing between Brodie and Henry during this scene?

10. Who does Henry believe there are musical similarities between as he and Annie talk?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The image of the house of cards is one that comes up several times during this play. The tenuous position of the cards is much like the position of many of the characters.

Part 1: Why do you think the house of cards is so appropriate as a prop in the play? Or isn't it?

Part 2: Why do you think 'house of cards' works so well as a metaphor for love in this play? Or doesn't it?

Part 3: Do you think a house of cards can ever be stable? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Sometimes it can seem as though people in the creative arena are more likely to have affairs with their co-stars than typical married couples do.

Part 1: Why do you think creative types are more likely to have affairs and to have multiple partners?

Part 2: Do you think it's fair to stereotype actors and other creative types as being more adulterous? Why or why not?

Part 3: How do you think creative types are challenged in their relationships which is not the case in 'normal' relationships?

Essay Topic 3

The structure used by Stoppard to show a play within a play is one that confuses the reader at times, though it might be easier for an audience member to appreciate.

Part 1: What did you think about the structure of a play within a play? Did you think it helped the play or hurt it?

Part 2: Why do you think Stoppard decided to use the play within a play structure?

Part 3: If the play had simply been straightforward without any play within a play structures, how might the story have been different?

(see the answer keys)

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