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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 is the man from who told the Clerk his tale?

2. Who is the focus of the Reeve's Tale?

3. How does the Summoner react to the Friar's Tale?

4. What is the question the knight must answer?

5. What kind of tale does the Friar offer to tell?

Short Essay Questions

1. How are the summoner and the yeoman both bailiffs?

2. What is the purpose of the knight's quest to find what women most desire?

3. Why can there be no real determination of the outcome of the Cook's Tale?

4. Why is the friar in the Summoner's Tale ironic?

5. What is the significance of Lady Constance's name in the Man of Law's Tale?

6. What is the point the Summoner makes about friars with the anecdote in his Prologue?

7. What is the Squire's plan before he is interrupted?

8. What is the basis of the Reeve's story? Why is this the basis for the story?

9. Why does January say he wants to marry? Why does he likely really want to marry?

10. How do the townspeople react to the situation after John crashes through the ceiling?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Define fable. Explain the uses of fables in literature. Explain the use of fable in The Canterbury Tales. Why is a fable a useful tale in The Canterbury Tales?

Essay Topic 2

Define theme. Choose one tale and identify its theme. How is the theme expressed in the tale? How is the theme used to drive the story forward?

Essay Topic 3

Define irony. Identify each type of irony and give an example from The Canterbury Tales for each.

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This section contains 603 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample