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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Where did Will live near the end of his life?
(a) Stratford
(b) Birmingham
(c) Lancashire
(d) London

2. Will’s plays are considered to be…
(a) Terrible examples of writing
(b) Deep studies of human nature
(c) Mere stories
(d) Important religious documents

3. What did Will and Christopher Marlowe have in common?
(a) The same university education
(b) Love of language
(c) The desire to drink heavily
(d) Family connections

4. Which character in one of Will’s works especially reflects the encounters that Will had with two of the members of the important group of playwrights in London?
(a) John Cade
(b) Romeo
(c) Falstaff
(d) King Lear

5. What was the watching public’s response to the execution of Queen Elizabeth’s personal doctor?
(a) Massive fear
(b) Cruel laughter
(c) Great remorse
(d) Sympathetic pity

6. Chapter 12 focuses on…
(a) Will's parentage
(b) Will's birth
(c) Will's religious beliefs
(d) Will's final days

7. Chapter 8 focuses mostly on Will’s…
(a) Health
(b) Marriage
(c) Poetry
(d) Children

8. Which member of the important group of playwrights in London was particularly opposed to Will’s success?
(a) Robert Greene
(b) The Earl of Southampton
(c) Richard Field
(d) Christopher Marlowe

9. What phrase best describes the Earl of Southampton?
(a) Self-indulgent
(b) In poor health
(c) Focused on traveling
(d) Religious

10. What happened to the members of the important group of playwrights in London during Will’s day?
(a) They all died
(b) They all conspired to assassinate Will in the method of Julius Caesar
(c) They all left the country
(d) They all joined the Church

11. Which of Will’s characters in Macbeth was a reinvention of one of King James’ ancestors?
(a) Banquo
(b) Jack Cade
(c) Iago
(d) Macbeth

12. In Chapter 12, what does the author suggest that Will feared?
(a) Old age
(b) Fire
(c) Financial ruin
(d) The king's wrath

13. Which of these prominent playwrights died last?
(a) Campion
(b) Shakespeare
(c) Marlowe
(d) Greene

14. What technique does the author use at the beginning of Chapter 9?
(a) Alliteration
(b) Flashback
(c) Intended forgetfulness
(d) Soliloquy

15. What was another significant innovation in Hamlet that refers to the development of the play’s characters?
(a) Removal of character descriptions
(b) Removal of consequences
(c) Removal of motivation for actions
(d) Removal of all women

Short Answer Questions

1. What theater was at the center of a dispute described in Chapter 10?

2. Which description does NOT fit the members of the important group of playwrights in London during Will’s day?

3. What was the name of the house that Will purchased?

4. Which of Will’s famous tragedies was written during the reign of King James?

5. During the production of which of Will’s plays did the Globe Theater burn down?

(see the answer keys)

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