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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. In Cymbeline, why does the King raise Posthumus?

2. What head of state is with Antonio on the ship in The Tempest?

3. With whom is Hermia in love at the beginning of A Midsummer Night's Dream?

4. Why does the French duke of As You Like It move to Arden?

5. In The Winter's Tale, what does Leontes want his counselors to ask the oracle at Delphos?

Short Essay Questions

1. At the end of As You Like It, what happy news arrives concerning the banished duke?

2. How does Proteus betray his friend Valentine in Two Gentlemen of Verona?

3. In The Tempest, how does Prospero bring his enemies to the island?

4. How does Oliver try to kill Orlando in As You Like It?

5. How does Prospero find Ariel in The Tempest?

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

7. What is Don Pedro's attitude to Beatrice and Benedick at the beginning of Much Ado About Nothing?

8. Under what circumstances does Lear go mad?

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

10. Why does Macbeth kill Banquo?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In many of his stories, Shakespeare juxtaposes two individuals who are close either as siblings or dear friends. He juxtaposes them through their actions, which reveal character. Write an essay about three of the stories in the collection in which pairs of characters are juxtaposed. What actions does Shakespeare use to juxtapose these characters? What is revealed through this juxtaposition? Do the characters become more or less similar as the story continues?

Essay Topic 2

The tragic figure of Shakespeare's stories suffer because they make rash decisions without considering the full ramifications of their actions. Write an essay discussing three tragic figures from the collection and the decisions they make. What drives the most destructive of these choices? What does the character want to accomplish, and what does he or she not consider regarding the ramifications of these choices? How do these choices undo this character, and what is Shakespeare saying about the human condition with this reversal?

Essay Topic 3

Shakespeare - like all writers of the Renaissance - has a central amount of stock character types that recur in his stories: the tenacious lover, the jealous companion, the conniving monarch, etc. In an essay, choose a character type that recurs throughout several stories. How does this character generally function in the story? Does he or she generally find success or ruin? Why do you think this is? Cite from the appropriate stories to illustrate your essay.

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