View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who is passed out drunk on the table the first time the bar acts as a setting within the play's narrative?

2. In what year does Act 1, Scene 1 take place?

3. For how many years has Cynthia worked on the factory floor before she applies for the management position?

4. Who does Jessie threaten to beat up during Act 1, Scene 2?

5. What physical ailment does the bartender have when we first meet him in Act 1, Scene 2?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Nottage's purpose in depicting Stan and Tracey as having been involved sexually before they became friends?

2. How do Jason and Chris view travel differently during the earlier of the two eras depicted in the play?

3. During the conversation about the open management position, how does Cynthia and Tracey's relationship experience a noticeable shift?

4. How is the theme of racial tension presented by the playwright before any dialogue is even spoken?

5. What does Evan mean when he tells Chris that "the river keeps flowing" (9)?

6. How is the theme of being trapped contained within Stan's advice to Chris about his job at Olstead's and about college?

7. Explain the different reactions of Chris and Jason to their respective post-prison stresses.

8. What qualities does Stan believe that a good leader must exhibit?

9. How is the theme of abject desperation demonstrated through Stan's reporting of the newspaper story about town citizen Freddy Brunner?

10. How is irony present in Jason's complaint when he says, "Fucking union got all our money tied up in benefits and shit, don't have nothing left for fun" (29)?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Stan's role within the events of the play and explain how his character helps to further develop certain themes inherent in Lynn Nottage's piece.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the playwright's messages concerning the nature of security. Does she indicate that it is dangerous or crucial? Choose one adjective and prove its validity using concrete details from the play.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the playwright's use of the two sets of character foils in the play: Chris and Jason, and Cynthia and Tracey. What purposes do these two sets of character foils serve in the play?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,403 words (approx. 5 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample