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

Short Answer Questions

1. What does the Small Man say they're saying in the camps?

2. What does Lear kneel by in Act 2, Scene 7?

3. Which character says, "For as long as I can remember there was misery and waste and suffering wherever you were. You live in your own mad world, you can't hear me"?

4. For whom does Lear call when he's being led by the soldiers?

5. Who says, "But if you listened to everything your conscience told you you'd go mad. You'd never get anything done--and there's a lot to do, some of it very hard"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare and contrast the characters of Lear and his daughters. How are their actions similar? How are they different? How are their motivations related?

Essay Topic 2

Lear makes a reference in Act 3 to Christ on the cross, which contains a certain irony in that Lear eventually finds himself in a similar place to that in which Christ found himself - executed by those in authority as an example to others who would think and believe and act independently. What are other Biblical references in Lear? How can Lear (and others) be compared to Biblical figures?

Essay Topic 3

What are the characteristics of the traditional tragic hero? What characteristics does Lear embody that make him the tragic hero of the play?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 262 words (approx. 1 page at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample