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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. The author claims that actors in France no longer "know how to do anything but" what?

2. Every breath has how many kinds of time?

3. What is the name of the second act of Artaud's proposed production?

4. Artaud claims that the lighting equipment now in use would no longer be what for the Theater of Cruelty?

5. In his second letter from "Letters on Language," Artaud states, "My plays have nothing to do with ______ improvisations."

Short Essay Questions

1. What must the actor control in order to relate emotions he wants to convey?

2. What is Artaud's subject of his second note in "Two Notes"?

3. Discuss Artaud's feelings about the cinema as he describes them in "The Theater of Cruelty."

4. What is Artaud's approach to the audience in the theater of cruelty?

5. How does Artaud describe the correlation between actions and language in his "Letters on Language"?

6. What is the author's criticism of the performance he writes of in the second of "Two Notes"?

7. In Artaud's "Letters on Language," he insists that the task of "mise en scène" must not be subordinated to spoken or written words as if this task was simply an accessory to theater. What does this mean?

8. What movie does Artaud use in comparison to his main subject in the first note of "Two Notes"? What does he write of American filmmakers?

9. Describe how Artaud defines the images and movement of the "Theater of Cruelty" in his second manifesto.

10. What does Artaud write in his "Letters on Language" regarding the psychology of characters?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In "The Theater of Cruelty: First Manifesto," Artaud discusses the need for a "new language" for the theater as "a metaphysics of speech, gesture, and expression, in order to rescue it from its servitude to psychology and "human interest." What does he mean by this?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the elements of Artaud's theories and Theater of Cruelty as they appear in today's world. Where can we see examples of Artaud's ideas in employment today?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the key points Artaud makes in "No More Masterpieces." Who does he refer to as the authors of these works? Why does he believe they should be disregarded?

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