Pretest

Question 1

Which of the following stage directions from part one of Trifles is designed to express emotion?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

D: MRS. HALE  (stiffly) :

Question 2

Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles . HALE: Well, she looked queer . COUNTY ATTORNEY: How do you mean—queer? HALE: Well, as if she didn’t know what she was going to do next. And kind of done up. Which word has a meaning similar to “queer” as it is used in this excerpt?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

B: strange

Question 3

Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles . MRS. HALE ( abruptly moving toward her ) : Mrs. Peters? Which best describes the effect of the word “abruptly” in the excerpt?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

B: The use of the word  abruptly  adds to the mysterious mood in the scene as the reader is left to wonder why Mrs. Hale is upset.

Question 4

Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles. HALE: I didn’t hear or see anything; I knocked at the door, and still it was all quiet inside. I knew they must be up, it was past eight o’clock. So I knocked again, and I thought I heard somebody say, “Come in.” I wasn’t sure, I’m not sure yet, but I opened the door—this door (indicating the door by which the two women are still standing) , and there in that rocker—( pointing to it ) sat Mrs. Wright. ( They all look at the rocker .) How does the underlined stage direction affect the mood of the scene?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

C: The emphasis on the rocker creates a tense mood as everyone is reminded of where Mrs. Wright calmly sat as she discussed her dead husband.

Question 5

Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles . COUNTY ATTORNEY ( with the gallantry of a young politician ) : And yet, for all their worries, what would we do without the ladies? What is the primary purpose of these stage directions?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

C: to indicate a character’s tone of voice

Question 6

Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles . MRS. HALE ( examining the skirt ) : What does the word “examining” mean in the stage direction?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

C: looking very closely

Question 7

Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles . COUNTY ATTORNEY ( with the gallantry of a young politician ) : Which best describes the effect of the word “gallantry” in this excerpt?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

A: It characterizes the County Attorney as someone desirous of showing respect to women, even if he does not mean it.

Question 8

Which stage direction from part one of Trifles best adds to the suspenseful tone?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

D: MRS. PETERS:   (starts to speak, glances up, where footsteps are heard in the room above. In a low voice.)

Question 9

Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles . SHERIFF: Nothing here but kitchen things. ( The County Attorney, after again looking around the kitchen, opens the door of a cupboard closet. He gets up on a chair and looks on a shelf. Pulls his hand away, sticky .) COUNTY ATTORNEY: Here’s a nice mess. ( The women draw nearer. ) MRS. PETERS ( to the other woman ) : Oh, her fruit; it did freeze. ( To the Lawyer ). She worried about that when it turned so cold. She said the fire’d go out and her jars would break. What do the underlined stage directions suggest about the women, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

D: They share a bond as women and are instinctively curious.

Question 10

Read the excerpt from part one of Trifles . SHERIFF ( unbuttoning his overcoat and stepping away from the stove as if to the beginning of official business ) : What is the primary purpose of these stage directions?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

A: to direct actions that take place onstage

Pretest Answers

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