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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. What does Hildy hear as he comes into the press room in Act 2, Part 1?

2. What does Louie inform the reporters his new job title is in Act 1, Part 2?

3. What job does Hildy tell the reporters he is quitting the paper for?

4. What are several reporters doing when the play opens in Act 1, Part 1?

5. Who throws Mollie out of the room in Act 1, Part 4?

Short Essay Questions

1. What major event happens at the end of Act 1, Part 4, and what surprising decision does it lead Hildy to make?

2. What interesting set of circumstances reveal the gun as the weapon used in the escape in Act 3, Part 2?

3. What is the one thing Burns says that gets Hildy to write the story in Act 2, Part 5, and what does it say about Hildy's character?

4. What does Hildy's speech reveal about his feelings towards the newspaper business, and what event in Act 1, Part 3 somewhat contradicts it?

5. What does Williams tell Mollie about the escape and where he has been the whole time in Act 2, Part 4?

6. What is the reason that Burns is upset with Hildy's story at the beginning of Act 3, Part 1, and what does that illustrate about his character?

7. What important fact do we learn by Murphy about the Mayor and the Sheriff in Act 1, Part 2?

8. How does Williams surprisingly reply to Mollie in Act 2, Part 4 when she offers to escape with him?

9. Through the exchange of dialogue by the reporters as they are calling in their stories, what new information do we learn about the hanging of Williams in Act 1, Part 2?

10. What do the other reporters illustrate when they urge the sheriff to interrogate Hildy in the beginning of Act 3, Part 2, and how does it contrast with what Hildy is doing?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The reporters are joking in the background of many acts in the play, displaying their cynicism as well.

1) Describe three situations where the cynicism or joking is illustrated and why you think the authors included it for those specific parts of the play.

2) Describe the time or times that Hildy also participated in the cynicism and joking, and why it was necessary to show that side of his character. What did it illustrate?

Essay Topic 2

Hildy and Peggy's future together is a focal point for The Front Page because it demonstrates many things about Hildy as a character. Outline their relationship in detail as it is depicted in the play. Include the main areas that they share similar views in, as well as the areas that they differ. Also, whether you think Hildy will in fact, be himself with Peggy after the play ends. Or, will he come to struggle with a part of himself that will always be there. Use the play as a reference to support your opinion.

Essay Topic 3

In Act 2, Part 1, the details surrounding Williams' escape emerge.

1) Describe 3 different versions of the escape as they were given by the reporters.

2) Describe Hildy's version of the escape at the end of Act 2, Part 1. How does it differ from the stories called in by the other reporters? Also, include what the authors are illustrating by having Hildy present the facts of the escape in this way. Why is that essential to the overall theme of the play?

(see the answer keys)

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