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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. How are the Greeks dividing the captive Trojan women among themselves?

2. What does Creon advise Oedipus to do after the former relays the message from the murdered king?

3. What is Tiresias unable to do in the second act of "Oedipus"?

4. Whom does Oedipus defeat before the start of the play?

5. Where does Oedipus send Creon?

Short Essay Questions

1. In the first act of "Troades," for whom does Hecuba lead the grief-stricken chorus and why?

2. Why are the Greeks unable to leave Troy in the beginning of "Troades"?

3. Describe Polyxena's fate.

4. How does Ulysses trick Andromache at Hector's tomb and why?

5. How does Agamemnon view the dead Achilles?

6. For what reasons do the Greeks want to sacrifice Astyanax?

7. Why is Creon reluctant to give Oedipus the information from Laius' ghost?

8. Why is Creon sent to Delphi and what does he learn?

9. What do the shepherd and the messenger reveal to Oedipus about his past?

10. Describe the pestilence in Thebes and how it affects Oedipus.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What roles do the gods play in the lives of Seneca's characters? How do they handle meting out justice? How do the humans look upon them? What is significant about the fact that the gods are never actually seen in any of these plays? How does this relate to the humans governing themselves and doling out punishments and justice? Develop a clear thesis statement in order to answer these questions (though not exclusively) and cite specific examples from the text to support your answers.

Essay Topic 2

How is justice handled in a Senecan tragedy? Discuss this in the following format:

Part 1) Atreus and Thyestes.

Part 2) The death of Hippolytus and Phaedra's suicide.

Part 3) Polyxena and Astyanax.

Part 4) Octavia's fate.

Part 5) Tantalus.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the theme of insatiable wants as seen in "Thyestes" in the following format:

Part 1) Tantalus' punishment.

Part 2) Atreus' need for more power.

Part 3) Thyestes' misgivings about his brother versus his acceptance of the reconciliation.

Part 4) Thyestes' belief that two men cannot rule equally.

Part 5) The tragedies and corruption that spring from greed.

(see the answer keys)

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