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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. How many articles did Susan Glaspell write as a reporter that covered the John Hossack murder case?

2. When was Trifles first performed?

3. As a founding member of a famous theatrical collaboration, Susan Glaspell arranged for the first ever reading of a play by what famed playwright?

4. When did Susan Glaspell marry George Cram Cook?

5. According to the Introduction, where was Trifles first performed?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Mrs. Wright reply when Mr. Hale tells her that he wants to see Mr. Wright?

2. What is revealed about the characters through their dialogue and language?

3. What themes are central in the play? Which characters are the focus of the play?

4. How does Henry Peters begin the investigation after arriving at the Wright home? What does Mr. Henderson interrupt to ask?

5. What does Mrs. Wright tell Mr. Hale about who murdered her husband? Who has she notified of his death?

6. How is the Wright property described?

7. What genre does the play Trifles fall into? Why?

8. What theatrical group did Susan Glaspell help found? Where was it originated?

9. Who goes for help after discovering Mr. Wright's body? What does Mr. Hale discuss with Mrs. Wright?

10. What does Mr. Hale respond when questioned about how Mrs. Wright appears when he arrives the previous day?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the foreshadowing from the opening scene in the narrative. What clue does the reader gain for future events in the story? How does the author highlight foreshadowing?

Essay Topic 2

Describe the use of exposition in A Jury of Her Peers. In a linear plot, where does the exposition generally fall in a story? How does this traditional plot structure apply to Trifles?

Essay Topic 3

Describe the setting of the story and discuss how this setting evokes mood. How is the Wright home described? What visceral sense do you get from the descriptions of the house? Why?

(see the answer keys)

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