View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What has happened to Waitwell after Lady Wishfort discovers what he really is?
(a) Fainall had him arrested.
(b) Mrs. Marwood berates him.
(c) Mirabell fires him.
(d) Foible tries to kill him.

2. What are the first poets going to do when judging a play?
(a) Say they dislike it, because they always dislike the plays they see.
(b) Suggest the author is unable to produce another good work.
(c) Insult the dramatist.
(d) Say it is unworthy of the playwright.

3. Congreve's claim that there are three types of critics includes all except one of the following. Which one is it?
(a) Tabloid reporters.
(b) Those who always dislike the plays they see.
(c) Failed poets who have no qualifications for judging others.
(d) Other successful playwrights.

4. What does the expression 'errant knave' mean?
(a) A ladies' champion.
(b) A chivalrous man.
(c) A man of high birth.
(d) A fool on a mission.

5. What does Waitwell bring into the room in the last scene?
(a) His marriage certificate.
(b) The black box.
(c) His personal documents.
(d) His marriage contract with Lady Wishfort.

6. Why was the cologne given to the footmen?
(a) To disguise bodily odor.
(b) To prevent the footmen from smelling like stable hands.
(c) To add to the elegance of the party.
(d) To give the footmen a little bonus.

7. What does Foible claim that Lady Wishfort will discover about Waitwell?
(a) He is an errant knave.
(b) He is a gentleman.
(c) He is a knight of the realm.
(d) He is a scoundrel.

8. What problem must Lady Wishfort solve instead of attending Sir Rowland at the end of Act 4, Scene 1?
(a) Problems between Mrs. Fainall and her husband.
(b) The drunkenness of her other male guests.
(c) Petulant's lady friends who are outside the house.
(d) Mirabell's argument with Mrs. Millamant.

9. What is the consequence of the revelation made by Mirabell concerning Mrs. Fainall?
(a) Lady Wishfort says she must give Mrs. Millamant to Mirabell.
(b) Mrs. Millamant refuses to marry Sir Wilfull.
(c) Sir Wilfull decides to marry Lady Wishfort.
(d) Fainall and Marwood become resigned to their failure.

10. What seems to determine the success of the characters in the play?
(a) Their motivations.
(b) Their greed.
(c) Their beliefs.
(d) Their plots.

11. What does Lady Wishfort demonstrate when she agrees to Fainall and Mrs. Marwood's schemes?
(a) She is a good Christian lady.
(b) She is subject to society's norms and opinions.
(c) She is too trusting.
(d) She believes in the high moral standards of her peers.

12. What is Lady Wishfort doing as Act 4, Scene 2 commences?
(a) Having tea with her guests.
(b) Lecturing Sir Wilfull on his drunkenness.
(c) Chatting casually.
(d) Playing cards with her guests.

13. What does Mrs. Marwood do to stop the argument between Petulant and Sir Wilfull in Act 3, Scene 3?
(a) She says she has a headache.
(b) She asks Sir Wilfull to stay in the city.
(c) She introduces the two brothers.
(d) She asks them to be quiet.

14. What does the final couplet of the play warn the audience against?
(a) Greed.
(b) Love.
(c) Falsehood and adultery in marriage.
(d) Vanity.

15. All of the following characteristics of Lady Wishfort's girlish excitement at Sir Rowland's visit are revealed except one. Which characteristic is not true of Lady Wishfort?
(a) She is a genuine person.
(b) She is a vain fool.
(c) She is a typical lady of Restoration society.
(d) She is an aging woman.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why did Congreve use the epilogue?

2. What does Mrs. Millamant ask Witwoud and Petulant as they enter the room in Act 3, Scene 3?

3. What does the item that Waitwell brings into the room in the last scene contain?

4. Why are failed poets unable to judge Congreve's play?

5. Which one of the following statements was not revealed by Mincing to Foible?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 737 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample