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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Whom do Antipholus and Dromio discover when they arrive in Ephesus, in "Comedy of Errors"?
(a) Their master.
(b) Their long lost twins.
(c) Their wives.
(d) Their servants.

2. What is it about "Richard III" that leaves Bloom dissatisfied?
(a) The excess of self-consciousness in the characters.
(b) The improbability of Lady Anne's seduction.
(c) The lack of strong motivations for Richard.
(d) The lack of inner dialogue.

3. What does Bloom say is the relationship between "The Merchant of Venice" and "The Jew of Malta"?
(a) An inversion.
(b) A reaction formation.
(c) A turning away.
(d) A transference.

4. Where does Shakespeare use the themes of "Two Gentlemen of Verona", in Bloom's interpretation?
(a) "All's Well That Ends Well".
(b) "Hamlet".
(c) "The Tempest".
(d) "Love's Labour's Lost".

5. Who is Faulconbridge's father?
(a) King John.
(b) Richard the Lion Hearted.
(c) Henry VI.
(d) King Arthur.

6. To what philosopher does Bloom compare Falstaff?
(a) Plato.
(b) Socrates.
(c) Nietzsche.
(d) Alcibiades.

7. How does Bloom characterize the marriage between Beatrice and Benedick?
(a) Ideal.
(b) Pragmatic.
(c) Sufficient.
(d) Flawed.

8. How is Joan of Arc depicted in "Henry VI", in Bloom's account?
(a) As a saint.
(b) As a whore/heroine.
(c) As a maternal figure.
(d) As a sly, manipulative woman.

9. What does Bloom reiterate about Christopher Marlowe?
(a) That he drank heavily while writing.
(b) That he was older than Shakespeare.
(c) That he was a youngest son.
(d) That he was murdered by English government agents.

10. What book does Bloom compare Shakespeare's plays to, in measuring their influence on Western culture?
(a) The Canterbury Tales.
(b) The Bible.
(c) Paradise Lost.
(d) Moby Dick.

11. How does Bloom characterize "Richard III"?
(a) A spectacle.
(b) Successful.
(c) Improbable.
(d) Absurd.

12. How does Bloom describe performances of "Titus Andronicus"?
(a) As alternatively funny or horrifying.
(b) As alternatively over-done or undefined.
(c) As alternatively crisp or incoherent.
(d) As alternatively melodramatic and gut-wrenching.

13. What kind of play is "Taming of the Shrew"?
(a) History.
(b) Farce.
(c) Comedy.
(d) Tragedy.

14. What complicates the action of "Two Gentlemen of Verona", according to Bloom?
(a) Murders.
(b) Incestuous marriages.
(c) Intrigues.
(d) Disguises.

15. In what way does Bloom say Shakespeare departs from Marlowe's precursor "The Jew of Malta"?
(a) The Jews are more caricaturist.
(b) The play is more overtly anti-Semitic.
(c) The Jew is more monstrous.
(d) The Christians are as vicious as the Jew.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who counters Richard II's character in "Richard II"?

2. Who claims that Shakespeare invented the human personality?

3. What does Bloom say Samuel Johnson dreaded to see in Shakespeare's plays?

4. Who does Julia look for, while she is disguised?

5. How does Bloom characterize "Romeo and Juliet"?

(see the answer keys)

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