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

Short Answer Questions

1. What employment does Mortimer give Rice Ap Howell at the end of Scene 5?

2. What does Edward expect the next news he receives to be?

3. What does Spencer Junior state wills his and Baldock's arrest?

4. Why does Isabella state she feels some sadness after the battle?

5. According to Matrevis in the beginning of Scene 3, men are meant to live in what?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In Marlowe's medieval England, murder is a carefully chosen and strategically effective means for altering the political dynamics of the realm. Write an essay about the key murders of the play and their effects in three parts:

Part 1) What are the noble's essential issues with Gaveston, and what other tactics do they attempt before murdering him? What is the final straw for the nobles, and what do they achieve with Gaveston's murder?

Part 2) Who decides that Kent must die, and how does he go about accomplishing this end? What is Kent's role in the political world of Edward II, and how does his removal change the dynamic?

Part 3) The murder of a king i s a major decision, rife with awful possibilities. Why do Isabella and Mortimer Junior decide to have Edward II killed after he is deposed? What do they hope to achieve? What is the ultimate result of this murder?

Essay Topic 2

The character of Edward II seems at times to be a man with a kingdom thrust upon him. He does not want, initially, to concern himself with the acts of kinship. Write an essay on Edward's relationship with governance in three parts:

Part 1) Gaveston is Edward's dear partner, but he represents something more essential in Edward's personality. How is Gaveston indicative of Edward's desire not to be a leader? How does he represent Edward's egoism?

Part 2) Describe the larger political events that swirl around Edward as he focuses on his personal happiness. What happens with France and Scotland? How do the nobles react? What comments does Edward make regarding his attitude toward his realm?

Part 3) At the end of Edward II, the titular character is transformed. How does loss render Edward a new outlook on the realities of kinship? Whatis his deepest relationship after Gaveston and Spencer Junior are gone?

Essay Topic 3

Edward II is a man who clearly does not have a clear definition of self. Write an essay exploring his quest for identity in the play. What do his passionate defenses of the unpopular Gaveston and Spencer Junior say about his sense of his place in England? Does he view himself as a king at the beginning of the play? What does his unwillingness to relinquish his crown at the end indicate about his progress over the course of the narrative?

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