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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. When was Jim's last play?

2. In what way does Jim eventually respond to Dr. Bellman's first request?

3. How many pills does Jim admit to taking?

4. What does the nurse suggest to Ann in the beginning of Act 1, Scene 2?

5. What does Ann realize as she enters in the fifth scene of Act 1?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is the convalescent ward compared to a prison sentence?

2. What is interesting about the doctors' ability to assess Jim at this point in the play?

3. How does Jim handle Dr. Bellman in the fourth scene of Act 3 and why?

4. How does Dr. Kramer assess Jim and what does that mean for his possible release?

5. What is ironic about the way the play ends and what message was the author trying to deliver?

6. How do the nurses interact with the patients in the beginning of the play and what does that illustrate?

7. How does the conversation between Ann and Dr. Schlesinger have a negative effect on Jim's chances to leave the hospital, and what are Ann's possible motives for her opinion?

8. What is Jim's mood in the last scene of Act 2, and why does he feel that way?

9. What is Jim's theory about life and death, and why his suicide attempt should not been seen as selfish?

10. According to what Jim tells Dr. Schlesinger, what is the event that triggered his intent to end his life?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The other patients are used to contrast Jim's situation at different times during the play.

1) What are the most significant differences between Jim and the other patients? Why are those differences necessary to his position?

2) Describe the patients that you think are the most similar to Jim and the ones that are the most different. For each of them, what role do they play in the plot and the overall message?

Essay Topic 2

In The Shrike, the author uses the background to illustrate certain aspects of the play and its characters.

1) Describe 3 examples of how imagery or scenery is used in the play and what each one represents.

2) For the examples in Part 1, explain how they relate back to the character or characters in that scene.

Essay Topic 3

Ann clearly has an agenda.

1) Describe Ann's character in detail, including the personality traits that you think are the most important, and how the author displays them.

2) Explain what Ann's objective is and why she is willing to act in extreme ways to attain it.

3) Why do you think Ann wants Jim to return to their marriage so badly? Describe the events in the book that might lead to the answer.

(see the answer keys)

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