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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. What is the cause of the lack of eggs for Robert's breakfast in Scene 1?

2. In Scene 2, what does Joan raise after being given control of the military?

3. How does Joan feel about meeting with the leader of her country?

4. What is the French army unable to do in the beginning of Scene 3?

5. What is the third thing that Robert gives Joan in Scene 1?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Joan's response to the church officials' threats of torture if she doesn't sign the paper admitting heresy in Scene 6?

2. How do the new king and his advisers feel about Joan and her desire to continue in battle after her success at Orleans?

3. How does Joan react to the powerful men kneeling at her feet in the king's dream?

4. In Scene 2, what does Gilles de Rais tell the Archbishop of Rheims and Lord Chamberlain de la Tremouille about Joan?

5. What happens to the Dauphin at the beginning of Scene 5, and who is responsible for it?

6. What are the Archbishop of Rheims and Lord Chamberlain de la Tremouille discussing while they wait for the Dauphin's arrival in Scene 2?

7. How do the church officials in Joan's trial respond to her reply to the additional charges brought against her?

8. In Scene 2, why is the Dauphin called "ineffectual"?

9. In Scene 1, what makes Joan think she is doing God's work? What does Robert think of her assertions?

10. How do the men who condemn Joan to death react after her execution?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The Catholic church is well represented in this play, including the Archbishop of Rheims and various bishops, clergymen, and officials. Given the skepticism these men show when exposed to Joan's mission/cause, would it be fair to say that these men weren't strong in their faith? Though the Archbishop of Rheims comes to respect and believe in Joan, why wouldn't he give her the benefit of the doubt from the beginning?

Essay Topic 2

Joan's power over the most important men in France leads to fear that her individualism might undermine the stability of the feudal structure. Describe the various intricacies of the feudal system and elaborate on what Joan's actions, while appearing fairly insignificant, might do to affect the entire structure. If the feudal system did collapse, what would the ramifications be to each level of the system? What would the pros and cons be of just such a synergistic system being the core of a country's economy and political/social structure?

Essay Topic 3

The king's dream in the Epilogue is an anachronistic dramatization intending to bring the play to a satisfactory resolution. What is the significance of the king's dream? Why would the king dream of a man from the 1920s? What does this man symbolize? Why would the men who excommunicated and executed Joan be in the dream? Why would the dream be more about these men than Joan? How does Shaw ensure that the reader is given a "happy" ending?

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