View a FREE sample

This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Act 1, Scene 1.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why does Wishfort dislike Mirabell?
(a) Mirabel loves Mrs. Millamant.
(b) Wishfort is jealous of Mrs. Millamant.
(c) Marwood is Mirabell's mistress.
(d) Mirabell tricked Wishfort into believing he loved her.

2. Another dramatic device is used in the final lines of Act 1, Scene 1 when Mirabell hints at a scheme involving Wishfort's maid. This device is known as:
(a) Omnipresence.
(b) Climax.
(c) Denouement.
(d) Foreshadowing.

3. The prologue begins with a comparison of what?
(a) Poets and other artists.
(b) Two kinds of fools.
(c) Poets and members of society.
(d) Fortune and destiny.

4. What are the tastes of poets determined by?
(a) How their lives evolve over time.
(b) Upbringing.
(c) Religious beliefs.
(d) Fortune.

5. What was Mrs. Millamant's response to her aunt's statement?
(a) She is offended.
(b) She agrees with her.
(c) She feels hurt for Mirabell.
(d) She laughs, too.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why did Mirabell pretend to love Lady Wishfort?

2. Why does the prologue refer to Congreve as a 'passive poet'?

3. What does the dramatic device of naming characters that are symbolic of their personality traits allow the playwright Congreve to do?

4. What does the prologue do?

5. Why were the first performances heavily criticized?

(see the answer key)

This section contains 332 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample