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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. Where do Belarius and her two brothers, Polydore and Cadwal, live?

2. In King Lear, Edmund is the bastard son of what earl?

3. Why does Bassanio need money at the beginning of Merchant of Venice?

4. At the end of As You Like It, whom does the duke's brother meet as he enters the forest to kill him?

5. Why does Macduff not pertain to the prophecy the witches give Macbeth?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the interaction between Prospero and his enemies on the island at the end of The Tempest.

2. How does Posthumus return to Britain at the end of Cymbeline?

3. What is the rift in the spirit room at the beginning of A Midsummer Night's Dream?

4. How do Antonio and Shylock lend money differently in Merchant of Venice?

5. Why is Posthumus banished at the beginning of Cymbeline?

6. Why is Cordelia banished at the beginning of King Lear?

7. How does Lady Macbeth convince Macbeth to kill Duncan?

8. In The Winter's Tale, how does Paulita convince the king of Bohemia to let her marry his son?

9. Why does Claudio think Hero is cheating on him in Much Ado About Nothing?

10. How does Valentine becomes the leader of bandits in Two Gentlemen of Verona?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In his stories, Shakespeare deals with individuals that hurt and betray their fellow man. These characters have many disparate reasons for doing this. Discuss three such malefactors and their motivations in an essay:

Part 1) Why does Macbeth choose to kill Duncan, his king? What external forces impel him to commit this evil act, and why does he acquiesce to them? Discuss how Macbeth makes progressively more evil choices to protect himself. What is Shakespeare saying about the way evil men are made?

Part 2) What drives Shylock to insist upon a pound of flesh as payment from his rival Antonio? What does his place in Venetian society have to do with this? To what extent does Antonio represent this marginalized place?

Part 3) How is Iago different from the other villains in Shakespeare's stories? What drives him to destroy Othello, Cassio, and Desdemona? Does he hold a grievance against all of them? To what extent does Shakespeare present Iago as a portrait of pure evil?

Essay Topic 2

In much of Shakespeare's writing, the natural and the supernatural interact, with mysticism coloring and driving the course of human events. Write an essay about three such instances, discussing the function and form of supernatural events:

Part 1) What is the story of A Midsummer Night's Dream before the introduction of the fairy world? How do the fairies affect the human world? Is this effect intentional or incidental to their business? Discuss how the events of this fairy world color the events of the Athenian youths.

Part 2) How does the realm of magic come into play in The Tempest? Who is reacting and fighting against magic, and who is controlling it? Discuss the way magic is used in the narrative as a driver of story. What magical figures are central to this story, and what specific actions do they undertake?

Part 3) What do the witches of Macbeth represent? How are they catalysts for the action, driving human interaction and rash action? Chart their appearances throughout the story. What promises do they make to the main character, and how do these promises prove false in the end?

Essay Topic 3

In A Midsummer Night's Dream, Shakespeare famously said the course of true love never did run smooth. Write an essay charting the arc of a particularly tumultuous courtship in one of the stories. What two characters are in love, and what obstacles prevent their complete happiness? How do they respond to these obstacles? Do they over come them or break apart from each other? Through this courtship, what is Shakespeare saying about romance and commitment?

(see the answer keys)

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