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

Short Answer Questions

1. In Scene 6, what does Joan have to do for the church officials to fulfill their commitment to Joan's soul?

2. The bishop thinks that Joan poses a threat to what?

3. In Scene 6, what is one of the crimes Joan is to be tried for?

4. In Scene 6, what occurs before Joan is brought into the courtroom?

5. In Scene 6, Joan gives two reasons for dressing in men's clothing. Which of these is one of those reasons?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Joan is excommunicated from the church and burned at the stake. Her death is horrible and cruel. Do the men responsible for her execution feel any remorse? Why or why not? How do you know? What events occur to reinforce the way they feel? What do these events symbolize?

Essay Topic 2

An ongoing theme throughout the play is feminism. Joan's role as a woman in Medieval France would rarely, if ever, have her participating in battle, let alone leading the troops. Do you think that Joan's supernatural powers and visions were a necessary component of her mission for her to be accepted and installed as a military leader? Or, do you think she would have been given the same respect as just a woman? Why? Joan obviously has no problem approaching high powered men. How does this add to the feminist theme?

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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This section contains 393 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample