King Lear, ACT II - Scene IV. quiz

From King Lear by William Shakespeare

King Lear Act 2, Scene 4 summary: Regan and Goneril strip Lear of his knights, he cries 'O, reason not the need!' and rushes out into the storm.

11 questions · about 12 minutes

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Questions and answers

  1. Question 1. When Kent insists that Regan and Cornwall stocked him, how do Lear and Kent swear against each other?

    • Lear swears by Apollo, and Kent swears by Jove
    • Lear swears on his crown, and Kent on his sword
    • Lear swears by Hecate, and Kent by the sun
    • Correct answer: Lear swears by Jupiter, and Kent answers by Juno

    Lear cries "By Jupiter, I swear no!" and Kent answers "By Juno, I swear ay!"

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  2. Question 2. According to Kent, why did he draw his sword on Oswald?

    • Oswald tried to steal the King's letters from him
    • Oswald mocked the King's daughters in front of Gloucester
    • Correct answer: Oswald was the fellow who had been saucy to the King
    • Oswald refused to let Kent enter Gloucester's castle

    Kent says Oswald was "the very fellow which of late / Display'd so saucily against your Highness," and that he drew with more courage than sense.

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  3. Question 3. What does the Fool advise with his image of a great wheel running down a hill?

    • Stay loyal to a great man most of all when he is falling
    • Correct answer: Let go of a falling great man, but follow one going up
    • Never trust a wheel, a horse, or a king's daughter
    • Push the wheel back up the hill before it gathers speed

    The Fool says to let go when a great wheel runs downhill "lest it break thy neck," but to follow the one going upward, mocking the self-interest of Lear's deserters.

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  4. Question 4. What reason does Regan give for not being ready to receive Lear right now?

    • Her husband Cornwall is ill and cannot have guests
    • She has promised her house to the King of France
    • Correct answer: She is away from home and has not prepared for him
    • The castle is being repaired after a recent storm

    Regan says, "I am now from home, and out of that provision / Which shall be needful for your entertainment."

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  5. Question 5. Which of these does Lear NOT say he would rather do than return to Goneril with half his knights?

    • Live out in the open air with the wolf and owl
    • Kneel to the King of France and beg for a pension
    • Become a slave and pack horse to the steward Oswald
    • Correct answer: Sail away into exile across the sea to Burgundy

    Lear names living without a roof, begging a pension from France, and serving Oswald; he says nothing about sailing into exile.

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  6. Question 6. In his final speech, what does Lear ask the gods to give him so he will not cry?

    • Correct answer: Noble anger, so that tears do not stain his cheeks
    • A swift death before his daughters can shame him more
    • An army of knights to take back his whole kingdom
    • Sleep, so that he can forget his daughters' cruelty

    Lear prays, "touch me with noble anger, / And let not women's weapons, water drops, / Stain my man's cheeks!"

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  7. Question 7. Which of these happened before Regan and Cornwall came out to meet Lear?

    • The Fool joked that Kent wears "cruel garters"

      Happened

    • Lear felt grief rising and called it "Hysterica passio"

      Happened

    • Gloucester freed Kent from the stocks on his own authority

      Didn't happen

    • Lear threatened to beat a drum at their chamber door

      Happened

    • Edmund came out to explain why Kent was punished

      Didn't happen

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  8. Question 8. Which of these happened after Goneril arrived?

    • Cornwall admitted he set Kent in the stocks

      Happened

    • Regan cut Lear's allowance to twenty-five knights

      Happened

    • Lear agreed to dismiss all his knights to stay with Regan

      Didn't happen

    • Gloucester reported that the King calls to horse

      Happened

    • Goneril begged Lear to return and bring his hundred knights

      Didn't happen

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  9. Question 9. Lear says, "They have travell'd all the night? Mere fetches-" What does "fetches" mean here?

    • Errands run by servants
    • Messages sent by horse
    • Short rests taken along a journey
    • Correct answer: Tricks or invented excuses

    Fetches are pretexts; Lear sees Regan and Cornwall's tiredness as an excuse to avoid him.

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  10. Question 10. In "No, rather I abjure all roofs, and choose / To wage against the enmity o' th' air," what does "abjure" mean?

    • Correct answer: To reject or give up
    • To build or repair
    • To curse loudly and at length
    • To beg for shelter

    Lear would rather renounce shelter altogether than return to Goneril.

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  11. Question 11. Lear says, "Made you my guardians, my depositaries." What are "depositaries"?

    • Correct answer: People trusted to hold property for another
    • Officers who collect a king's taxes
    • Lands that are left to a younger child
    • Servants who keep the castle stores

    Lear made his daughters trustees of his kingdom, keeping back only the right to his hundred knights.

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Next: King Lear, ACT III - Scene I.