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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Electra find when she wonders aloud if her brother has returned?
(a) Orestes and Pylades' footprints.
(b) Pylades' pack.
(c) A campfire.
(d) Offerings to the gods.

2. What does Orestes leave behind at his father's tomb in tribute ?
(a) A lock of his hair.
(b) A book of verse.
(c) His sword.
(d) His sister's letters.

3. What god does the leader of the chorus praise for Agamemnon's victory?
(a) Zeus.
(b) Apollo.
(c) Athena.
(d) Hera.

4. For what does Clytemnestra particularly take offense with the chorus while reveling in her triumph?
(a) The chorus condemns her murder of Agamemnon, but not his murder of their daughter.
(b) The chorus did not beg her for her forgiveness.
(c) The chorus sympathized with Cassandra.
(d) The chorus did not ask the gods to bless her.

5. What does Orestes pray for at the beginning of "The Libation Bearers"?
(a) His success in war.
(b) Peace of mind.
(c) Success in his plan of revenge for his father's murder.
(d) Safe voyage overseas.

6. How does Clytemnestra defend her actions against Agamemnon to the chorus?
(a) She argues that there never was a curse.
(b) She argues that the Furies will not hurt her.
(c) She argues that she ended the curse.
(d) She argues that she cannot be cursed again.

7. What reasoning did Clytemnestra give for exiling a certain person before the events of "The Agamemnon"?
(a) She wanted him out of the way of her lover's ascension.
(b) She wanted to keep her son safe from Trojan assassins.
(c) She was afraid that gods would smite her son.
(d) She was afraid her daughter might tempt her lover.

8. In the first part of the first play, what signal is the man on the roof looking for?
(a) A ship.
(b) An arrow.
(c) A bonfire.
(d) A moonbeam.

9. Why is the herald so joyful?
(a) Clytemnestra favors him.
(b) The gods have spoken to him.
(c) He is gotten married.
(d) He is home in Mycenae.

10. What was Apollo's reaction to Cassandra not meeting his expectations when he granted her with a gift?
(a) He impregnated her, shaming her family.
(b) He cursed her to speak the truth but never to be believed.
(c) He took away her gift of prophecy.
(d) He turned the other gods against her.

11. Who is the first character to speak in "The Oresteia"?
(a) The leader of the chorus.
(b) Agamemnon.
(c) Menelaus.
(d) The Watchman.

12. What does Clytemnestra's entrance reveal in the fifth part of "The Agamemnon"?
(a) Orestes has returned.
(b) Agamemnon and Cassandra are murdered.
(c) The ghost of her daughter is following her.
(d) Aegisthus is preparing to murder her.

13. To whom does Orestes pray while at his father's tomb?
(a) Hera and Demeter.
(b) Hermes and Zeus.
(c) Athena and Apollo.
(d) Aphrodite and Diana.

14. For what does Clytemnestra triumphantly reproach the chorus in the fifth part of "The Agamemnon"?
(a) Underestimating her because of her gender.
(b) Their reliance on the gods to intervene.
(c) Their ignorance about politics.
(d) Their support of Cassandra.

15. According to Clytemnestra's message to the herald, how has she kept her husband's house?
(a) Safe and welcoming upon his return.
(b) She has been overwhelmed by the responsibilities of it.
(c) As well as she could.
(d) She has given it over to someone else for safekeeping.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Aegisthus brag about to the chorus?

2. To what does the chorus compare Troy after the herald exits?

3. What does somber information does the chorus remind the herald of?

4. According to the chorus, what was Paris's crime?

5. Who comprises the group of women at Agamemnon's tomb?

(see the answer keys)

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