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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who is the King of Thebes in the beginning of the Background?
(a) Oedipus.
(b) Laius.
(c) Polyneices.
(d) Eteocles.

2. Plays based on Greek legend usually involve a generation after generation repeating a ______.
(a) Resistance.
(b) Crime.
(c) Fable.
(d) Story.

3. Who is the King of Thebes at the opening of part 1?
(a) Polyneices.
(b) Argos.
(c) Eteocles.
(d) Laius.

4. The Chorus refers to the attacks against the city of Thebes as _______.
(a) Sand.
(b) Clouds.
(c) Trees.
(d) Waves.

5. Who solves the Riddle of the Spinx?
(a) Ismene.
(b) Laius.
(c) Oedipus.
(d) Polyneices.

6. Whose appearance and description of the armies is a typical device of classical Greek theatre?
(a) The Chorus.
(b) The king.
(c) The blacksmith.
(d) The Scout.

7. What does Eteocles compare Thebes and its land to?
(a) Their brother.
(b) Their mother.
(c) Their father.
(d) Their sister.

8. Who is Jocasta?
(a) Laius' daughter.
(b) Polyneices' wife.
(c) Oedipus' wife.
(d) Oedipus' sister.

9. What is the setting of the play?
(a) Thebes.
(b) Arabia.
(c) America.
(d) Greece.

10. After Oedipus' death, who rules the city of Thebes?
(a) Eteocles.
(b) Jocasta.
(c) Antigone.
(d) Polyneices.

11. Laius is regarded as a _______ in the city of Thebes.
(a) Mastermind.
(b) Nobleman.
(c) Hero.
(d) Tyrant.

12. Why is Eteocles considered to be an illegal king?
(a) He is not originally from Thebes.
(b) He broke his agreement with his brother.
(c) He is not old enough to be king.
(d) He is not married.

13. The Chorus of Women represents ___________.
(a) The army.
(b) The country.
(c) The city.
(d) The universe.

14. As punishment for his crime, if Laius fathered any children, what would happen to the city of Thebes?
(a) It would be infested.
(b) It would be destroyed.
(c) It would rule all nations.
(d) It would be safe.

15. _______ rescues Oedipus and raises him to adulthood.
(a) Ismene.
(b) Jocasta.
(c) A fisherman.
(d) A farmer.

Short Answer Questions

1. Plays in ancient Greece are produced as part of what type of ceremony?

2. Who kills Oedipus' adopted father in the Background section of the play?

3. The women of Thebes pray to the gods to remember their faithfulness and protect them so they can continue to do what?

4. Who conspires to kill Oedipus at the end of the Background section?

5. What is the name of Laius' son?

(see the answer keys)

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