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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Creon advise Oedipus to do after the former relays the message from the murdered king?
(a) Renounce the throne.
(b) Commit suicide.
(c) Consult with Tiresias.
(d) Pray to Zeus.

2. How did Astyanax's bravery affect Ulysses and the Greeks?
(a) They saluted him.
(b) They cried out of pity,
(c) They prayed to the gods for mercy.
(d) They mocked him.

3. What has happened to the Trojan widows after their army was defeated?
(a) The women escaped the city.
(b) The women have all been prepared for suicide.
(c) The women have all been claimed by the Greeks.
(d) The women took up arms to defend themselves.

4. According to Talthybius, what did a prophet witness that suggests the sea mourns for Achilles?
(a) The earth split into two.
(b) The sea has grown turbulent.
(c) An animal fell into the rocks.
(d) A tree fell in a storm.

5. According to Calchas, why must Polyxena and Astyanax die?
(a) Apollo demands that they die or he will kill the Greeks.
(b) Their deaths will ensure a safe voyage home for the Greeks.
(c) They have the plague.
(d) They pose too much of a threat to the Greeks.

6. Who is Creon?
(a) Tiresias' brother.
(b) Laius' brother.
(c) Oedipus' brother.
(d) Jocasta's brother.

7. Who does Andromache blame for the fall of Troy?
(a) Paris.
(b) Helen.
(c) Achilles.
(d) Agamemnon.

8. What does Agamemnon claim as being forbidden, due to shame and honor?
(a) Claiming the Trojan women as concubines.
(b) Sacrificing a maiden for Achilles.
(c) Abandoning their dead warriors.
(d) Dishonoring the graves of the fallen Trojans.

9. What does Oedipus wish upon the murderer of Jocasta's late husband?
(a) Subjection to an angry mob of Laius' subjects.
(b) Torment from Hades.
(c) His prophecy from Apollo.
(d) Death.

10. What does the old shepherd reveal to Oedipus about his parentage?
(a) Oedipus' mother is his wife, Jocasta.
(b) Oedipus' mother died in childbirth.
(c) Oedipus' mother is the queen of Corinth.
(d) He is Oedipus' father.

11. Where does Andromache hide her son?
(a) The caves by the edge of the city.
(b) The temple of Apollo.
(c) The marketplace.
(d) Hector's tomb.

12. From where did Oedipus come?
(a) Corinth.
(b) Rome.
(c) Troy.
(d) Thebes.

13. Where does Oedipus send Creon?
(a) The Oracle at Delphi.
(b) The Underworld.
(c) Corinth.
(d) Troy.

14. What course of action does Tiresias propose he take in order to help avenge the king's murder?
(a) He will sacrifice himself to the gods for the end of the plague.
(b) He will go to the Oracle himself.
(c) He will pray to Zeus for guidance.
(d) He will summon the king's ghost.

15. How does Ulysses trick Andromache into revealing Astyanax's location?
(a) He claims Hector's tomb must be torn down.
(b) He watches her eyes as she looks around for him.
(c) He pretends to leave but watches her walk into the tomb.
(d) He suggests that the boy is a coward.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why is Oedipus fearful of returning to his homeland?

2. Why is Andromache jealous of Polyxena?

3. What does Oedipus reveal to Jocasta at the end of the play?

4. What does Agamemnon claim about Achilles' behavior during battle?

5. Who was murdered before the beginning of "Oedipus"?

(see the answer keys)

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