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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 Peace, what are the gods feelings about the war in Greece?

2. What happens when Bdelycleon tries to sell the donkey himself?

3. In the Knights, what do the slaves tell the audience?

4. What does Dicaeopolis do after the closing of the assembly?

5. How does Bdelycleon propose to settle the dispute between him and the Wasps concerning his father?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Aristophanes portray the Athenian political system in The Knights?

2. Why is Strepsiades expelled shortly after his enrollment at the school in The Clouds?

3. How important are the discussions by the orators preceding Dicaeopolis?

4. What is Dicaeopolis waiting for at the beginning of Acharnians and why?

5. In what way does Pheidippides change after finishing his training in The Clouds?

6. What arguments does Dicaeopolis' use before the crowd while his head is on the chopping block?

7. Who replaces Strepsiades at the school in The Clouds?

8. Why did the gods leave heaven in the Peace?

9. Why is Cleon portrayed as a betraying slave in The Knights?

10. In Peace, why does Trygaeus want to see the gods?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the play, Acharnians, Aristophanes gives insight into the Greek democracy, as well as its representatives, but he also examines the suffering of his country. Compare the democracy described in Acharnians with the democracy today in the United States. Provide examples from Acharnians to support your comparison.

Essay Topic 2

In Knights, Aristophanes uses satire in his depiction of democracy and its leaders. Who does Aristophanes use satire to describe? Make sure you define satire and identify the leader whom Aristophanes is emphasizing in Knights, while providing examples from the book to support your discussion.

Essay Topic 3

Given the historical or factual nature of many of Aristophanes' plays, who does Aristophanes blame for the ongoing war in the play Peace? What effects did the war have on Athens? Why did the war continue for as long as it did? Use a secondary source and the text to support your discussion.

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This section contains 768 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample