View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which character is unassisted at the beginning of Act 1?

2. What name has Carr been given for Gwen's chaperon?

3. In describing his trenches experience in this section, Carr says he ruined several what?

4. At the beginning of this section, what does Carr tell Bennett is completely absent from Switzerland?

5. The Zimmerwaldists believe the workers of the world need to oppose what?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Lenin's aversion to career artists.

2. Why does Cecily believe the British are unusually bumbling in their spying on Lenin?

3. What confusion exist between Tzara and Carr regarding the reasoning behind the war?

4. How does Carr explain Tzara's appearance?

5. What is Henry Carr's relationship to James Joyce?

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

7. How does Joyce explain his decision to produce The Importance of Being Earnest?

8. How did Tristan Tzara discover the word Dada?

9. What is Joyce's business at the house at the end of the play?

10. Describe Carr's obsession with clothing.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay about the character of Bennett. He is far an away the most cultivated and best-informed person in the play, but he is a manservant. Stoppard, in his cast notes, says that he should be "quite a weighty presence" (vii). What is Bennett's function int he script at the beginning of the play? How does Carr's leaving him in charge of the consulate affect Lenin's situation? What new revelations about his character are revealed in the final moments of the play?

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

In Travesties, the setting of Zurich is a central component of the story, creating a unique combination of peace and fervor. Write an essay about the role of Zurich in the play in three parts:

Part 1) At the beginning of the play Henry Carr speaks glowingly of life in Switzerland during the war. What does he love in particular about it? How is it a succor for someone who has been in the trenches?

Part 2) Joyce and Tzara both comment that Zurich has become the artistic center of Europe. What has brought so many creative souls to the city? What new and old art is being created?

Part 3) Zurich is also the home of political exiles. Describe the exiled leftist Russian government that holds regular gatherings in Switzerland. How do they plan the revolution from their exiled post?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 982 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample