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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 what year was Lenin forced into exile from Russia?

2. What did Tzara leave in Carr's drawing room on his last visit?

3. Whose dropped writings does Joyce pick up in the first scene of the play?

4. Which of the following is not a term that Carr shouts at Tzara when he loses his temper in this section?

5. To what symbol of nonviolence does Carr compare Switzerland in his monologue?

Short Essay Questions

1. What ridiculous statement does Old Carr make about his connection to Lenin?

2. Why is Carr livid over Joyce's request for 25 francs in ticket sales?

3. What is the reason for Cecily's coming to Gwen's house?

4. What is Lenin's ill-fated plan to leave Switzerland?

5. How do Cecil and Gwen realize that they are both engaged to Tzara?

6. What new revelation regarding Bennett is revealed in the final moments of the play?

7. What is the last straw for Gwen and Cecily regarding Tzara and Carr?

8. Describe Lenin's aversion to career artists.

9. Describe some examples of the aristocratic aloofness Carr displays int his section.

10. How does Joyce convince Carr to take the role of Algernon?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Lenin is more object than subject in Travesties. He is a commodity desired and detested severally through the play. Write an essay about his character. The first half of this essay should deal primarily with other characters' attitudes toward him. Why is he lionized by some and feared by others? How does his attempt to depart Switzerland force certain characters into awkward positions? The second half should deal with his personality and soul as described by Nadya. How does Lenin view the world, and how does this view lend itself to the embracing of Marxism?

Essay Topic 2

Over the course of the play, many characters argue the virtues and vices of new art. Each of the major figures has a different view regarding art's place in society. Write an essay discussing these viewpoints, focusing on the four major characters of the play. What does each think about the role of art? What is the value of old art? What about new art like Dada? What lesson is art meant to impart to its audience?

Part 1) Henry Carr

Part 2) Tristan Tzara

Part 3) James Joyce

Part 4) Lenin

Essay Topic 3

Tom Stoppard is a linguist, perhaps the most adventurous linguist of the modern theatre. Language plays a major part in Travesties, though the play is all in English. Write an essay analyzing the major forms the writing takes, focusing on four forms: Witty Farce, Docudrama, Modern Debate, and Limericks. When dos each form occur in the play? What characters or topics are invariably involved with each form? Does one form generally follow another?

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