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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 happens to cause everyone at the party to stop talking?

2. What kind of a party is going on in Act 1, Scene 6?

3. What does Helena's constant need for Maria to help her make coffee symbolize?

4. What does the item that Gross is carrying in Act 1, Scene 5 symbolize?

5. Gross is being intentionally forced to lose more of what?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do Hana's habits and actions symbolize?

2. What is the game that Helena plays with Gross and what does it symbolize?

3. In the final scene of the play, what theme is brought to the forefront and what is the message Havel delivers?

4. What explanation does Ballas offer to Gross and what position does he offer him?

5. What possibility does Lear's empty classroom at the end of Act 2, Scene 8 symbolize?

6. What events lead Gross to speak out against the technological advances that are affecting humanity?

7. Explain the symbolic meanings behind some of the characters introduced in Act 1, Scene 3.

8. What important message does Maria give to Gross at the beginning of the second part of Act 2, Scene 9, part 2 about winning, and how does it apply to his situation?

9. What subtle things does Ballas do to maintain his power?

10. What is significant about Thumb's interaction with Lear in Act 2, Scene 11?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does the final scene display the need to confront the attempt to suppress individualism and freedom at any cost? Which characters in the scene illustrate that the most? Why do you think Havel chose those characters to make the strongest point of the play?

Essay Topic 2

Havel introduces many forms of symbolism by using objects to illustrate his point.

1) Choose three different objects that are a form of symbolism and describe in detail what they represent. Include how they are used in the storyline and why they are effective. What is Havel trying to tell the audience with each of them?

2) Out of the examples you chose in the first section, are there any that are more important to the plot? What makes them more important? How do they fit into the overall theme and main point of the play?

Essay Topic 3

Manipulation is one of the main weapons used against Gross throughout the entire play. Using several examples from the play, describe in detail how Gross is manipulated on a variety of different levels. What is the objective of the manipulation? Why is it effective? Overall, why is manipulation necessary to the way a bureaucratic system functions? How does the play illustrate the way manipulation can lead to control over someone?

(see the answer keys)

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