1. In A Midsummer Night's Dream, Bottom, Flute, and Snout have names that are puns on A. famous people of that day. B. malapropisms.C. their physical appearance.D. their trade or employment.
Their names are puns on D. their trade or employment. These three people are known as ‘the mechanicals,’ because they perform in a play within this play written by Shakespeare. Their names have to do with what they do – Flute because of the instrument he plays, and Snout because of it is a part of the kettles he mends.
2. According to Renaissance philosophy, commoners often represent A. reason. B. love.C. pride.D. appetite.
Commoners often represent D. appetite. They are always greedy and want more and more, and when given more, it is still not enough for them. They are common, and not refined as the upper classes are, at least according to Renaissance philosophy. Whereas the upper classes are sophisticated, the lower classes are greedy.
3. Egeus wants his daughter to A. marry Lysander. B. enter a convent. C. be executed. D. marry Demetrius.
Egeus wants his daughter to D. marry Demetrius. His daughter, Hermia, is in love with Lysander. However, Egeus hates Lysander and will not allow her to marry him. Instead, he wants her to marry Demetrius, who is more to his liking. Given that he is her father, she has to listen to him, or else she will be executed or go to a convent.
4. "The best in this kind are but shadows" is A. Theseus talking about plays. B. Bottom talking about his fellow craftsmen. C. Demetrius talking about the women he has loved in the past. D. Titania talking about men.
“The best in this kind are but shadows” is A. Theseus talking about plays. What he is trying to say here is that the best plays are illusions, or very good imitations of real life; he goes on to say that the worst plays aren’t any worse, if you use your imagination to make it better. This is something Theseus says near the end of the play.
5. In act 5, why does Hippolyta believe the lovers' story of their time in the forest? A. She wants to oppose Egeus. B. She believes the women because she's a queen. C. The lovers' stories all match. D. She wants to defend the lovers.
Hippolyta believes the lovers’ story of their time in the forest because C. the lovers’ stories all match. She does note that their story is rather strange, but she still believes them nevertheless given that their accounts of what happened in the forest are the same. Theseus, on the other hand, doesn’t believe them.
6. In Act IV, Scene 1, of A Midsummer Night's Dream, as the drama nears resolution, to whom does Demetrius address these lines? My love to Hermia, Melted as the snow, seems to me now As the remembrance of an idle gaud A. Egeus B. Theseus C. Helena D. Lysander
This is a complicated question – do you want to know who Demetrius is talking to or about in these lines? If you want to know who these lines are ABOUT, then the correct answer is C. Helena. Demetrius is saying that he realized he doesn’t love Hermia, but rather Helena, and wants to marry her. On the other hand, if you want to know who he is talking TO, then the correct answer is B. Theseus. He is telling this new information to his lord, Theseus, which you can see in brackets – it says (to Theseus).
7. The craftsmen in the play speak in prose because A. that kind of common language symbolizes their status in life. B. too much blank verse gets tiresome. C. it's the language of love. D. Theseus would have forbidden them to use verse.
The craftsmen in the play speak in prose because A. that kind of common language symbolizes their status in life. In all of Shakespeare’s plays, commoners, or workers, speak using prose because poetry is considered to be an elevated form of speech. Therefore, it shouldn’t be wasted on mere craftsmen – gods and royalty, as well as upper classes, speak using poetry rather than prose.
8. The ability of writers to completely identify with their characters is A. satire. B. negative capability.C. ambiguity.D. hypocrisy.
The correct answer is B. negative capability. It’s not satire as that includes mockery, usually of real-life people. It’s not ambiguity, because that refers only to uncertainty, double-meanings. It’s not hypocrisy, as that means you are pretending to be something you are in fact not. This leaves us with negative capability – it is a term coined by Keats, referring mostly to his own work, as well as Shakespeare’s.
9. When are the following lines spoken? If we shadows have offended, Think but this, and all is mended, That you have but slumber'd here, While these visions did appear. A. When Hermia and Lysander are talking B. At the very end of act 5 C. Right before Puck casts a spell on Bottom D. When Theseus and Hippolyta are talking about their wedding
These lines are spoken B. at the very end of act 5. This is the final monologue in the play, spoken by Robin/Puck. What it essentially means is that he is apologizing for everything that happened in the play, and asking the readers/audience not to be upset because it is just a play. He is advising them to think of it as a dream, and to have a good night.
10. Whospeaks the line "Lord, what fools these mortals be"? A. Cobweb B. Puck C. Mustardseed D. Oberon
These lines are spoken by B. Puck. He says these lines during Act 3. He is talking to Oberon, referring to Lysander and Demetrius, who are both chasing after Helena. In the end, Helena marries Demetrius, whereas Lysander marries Hermia, after realizing he was put under a spell to fall in love with Helena.
11. Which characters exchange these lines—and in what order—in Act I, Scene 1 of A Midsummer Night's Dream? I frown up him, yet he loves me still. O that your frowns would teach my smiles such skill! A. Oberon followed by Titania B. Titania followed by Oberon C. Hermia followed by Helena D. Helena followed by Hermia
The correct answer is C. Hermia followed by Helena.Hermia is the one who says the first line, and Helena says the second one. Helena is asking Hermia how she managed to make Demetrius fall in love with her so much without any effort. Hermia tells her that whatever she does, frown upon him, curse him, hate him, he seems to fall more and more in love with her, which is not something she wants.
12. Using pairs of opposites, such as Helena and Hermia, is called A. foreshadowing. B. irony.C. realism.D. doubling.
Using pairs of opposites, such as Helena and Hermia, is called D. doubling. In literature, doubling is a term which refers to juxtaposing two characters who are each other’s opposites. Helena and Hermia are quite different from each other – Helena is fragile and loveable, whereas Hermia is strong and fierce.
13. In Act III, Scene 1, who hears these words from Titania? Thou art as wise as thou art beautiful. A. Oberon B. Bottom C. Puck D. Peaseblossom
B. Bottom is the one who hears these words from Titania. Titania falls in love with Bottom, because Oberon sprinkled love potion on her eyes while she was sleeping. The potion made her fall in love with the first person she saw once she woke up, which in this case, was Bottom. This is why she thinks he is both wise and beautiful.
14. By the Renaissance theory of correspondences, the heart of the family is the A. father B. grandmother C. grandfather D. mother
The heart of the family is the D. mother, according to the Renaissance theory of correspondences. The mother is the center of the family – she is the one who takes care of the family and the home, prepares food for everyone, and provides unconditional love for both her partner and her children. Renaissance recognized the role of the mother within a family, which is why this theory talks about her significance.
15. Read the following passage from act 3, scene 2. So we grew together, Like to a double cherry, seeming parted, But yet an union in partition; In this passage, Helena is referring both to herself and to A. Oberon. B. Titania. C. Lysander. D. Hermia.
Helena is referring both to herself and to D. Hermia. Helena is feeling hurt because she thinks Hermia played a trick on her. This is why she recounts their history, how they grew up together, how they were best friends, almost sisters – she believes they were one soul in two bodies, but now she is disappointed.
16. Before the Renaissance, virtually all dramas focused on A. life-and-death plots. B. family relationships.C. religious themes.D. the human condition.
Before the Renaissance, virtually all dramas focused onC. religious themes. Prior to this era, people were really devout believers and thus they wanted their plays to have to do with religion, primarily. However, when Renaissance came (Renaissance means rebirth), they realized that there were subjects other than religion, such as love, tragedy, politics, history, etc.
17. Humanistsbelieve that A. life on earth is important in its own right. B. humans and animals existed on the same level. C. Shakespeare didn't actually write the plays we think he did. D. love is an illusion.
Humanists believe that A. life on earth is important in its own right. They want to stress the fact that humans shouldn’t only think about religion and obeying their lord’s commands, but rather that they should also think about themselves, and their own lives as well. They should put themselves in the center of their life, and not God or kings. According to them, all life is important.
18. Regarding the nature of drama, which statement is false? A. Drama is like poetry, in that it is meant to been seen and heard. B. Modern dramas, such as films, are not structured in the manner of stage plays. C. In reading drama, some elements have to be imagined by the reader. D. Drama is meant to present a story through action and dialog.
The correct answer should be B. Modern dramas, such as films, are not structured in the manner of stage plays. A is true – plays are supposed to be seen performed. C is true – the playwright cannot write every single detail, which is why you as the reader have to imagine something. D is true – action and dialogue are the most important parts of a play. This leaves us with B – as there are significant differences between movies and plays.
19. Dramatic irony means that A. everything works out in the end. B. things are going to end very badly for someone. C. the cosmos, state, family, and individual follow the same pattern. D. the audience knows something the character or characters don't.
Dramatic irony means that D. the audience knows something the character or characters don’t. For example, in the beginning of Hamlet, we know that it was Claudius who killed Hamlet’s father; however, he doesn’t know it yet. He is trying to determine whether it was him, but he is unsure, whereas we know for a fact.
20. In his comedies, Shakespeare is well known for A. an unusual use of Middle English. B. fatally flawed characters. C. revealing great heroes as common fools.D. the device of mistaken identity.
Shakespeare is well known for D. the device of mistaken identity. This happens quite often in his plays – usually, women are dressed as men and pretending to be male in order to achieve their goals. In the end, every doubt about them is cleared, but their mistaken identities are usually there to achieve a comic effect.