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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How many villagers does Dan say supposedly were in Cahokia?
(a) Forty to fifty thousand.
(b) Three hundred.
(c) Sixty thousand.
(d) Ten thousand.

2. Whom does August say Cynthia believes herself to be when speaking to the recorder in Act 1 Part 2?
(a) Ansel Adams.
(b) Ginger Rogers.
(c) An excellent mother.
(d) Diane Arbus.

3. How does Delia describe her father's office?
(a) Clinical.
(b) Feminine.
(c) Masculine.
(d) Floral.

4. Who is revealed to be having an affair with Cynthia near the end of Act 1?
(a) August.
(b) Delia.
(c) Dan.
(d) Chad.

5. Why does Dan rattle on during his conversation with Delia in the middle of the night in Act 1 Part 6?
(a) He is drunk.
(b) He is nervous.
(c) He is stoned.
(d) He is distracted by his wife's affair.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which character says, "I have an intense desire to turn to the end of the chapter and see how it all comes out?"

2. What does Dan ask August not to reveal to the others in early Act 1?

3. Jean asks Delia in Act 1 Part 5 if she happens to have what?

4. Why does August have to go to the airport in Act 1?

5. What is Delia's last name?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who do we discover is having an affair in Act 1? Who else knows about the affair?

2. Which character's father was a physiologist? Describe the father's office from the perspective of that character.

3. What is the primary motif used in the play? How does this motif symbolize the main character, and how does it relate to the theme?

4. How does Jean feel about Chad's advances in Act 2? What does August say regarding Chad?

5. Is the mask that was discovered made of gold? Why does August state that it is?

6. The Mound Builders is unique in its depiction of time. Explain the two different periods of time which are illustrated in the play and how this differentiation is made clear to the audience (and reader).

7. What does Delia compare her book to? Why?

8. What does the rain represent in Act 2?

9. What fact about Jean's character does Dan ask that August not reveal to the others early in the play? Why?

10. What is revealed to Dan in Act 2 Part 4 regarding the building of the highway? Who is responsible for this?

(see the answer keys)

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