Romeo and Juliet, ACT III - Scene II quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. What is Juliet doing at the very beginning of Act III, Scene II?

   • Writing a letter to Romeo at Friar Laurence's cell
   • Arguing with her parents about marrying Paris
   • Correct answer: Delivering a soliloquy longing for nightfall and Romeo
   • Speaking with the Nurse about Tybalt's challenge

   The scene opens with Juliet alone in Capulet's orchard, passionately invoking night to bring Romeo to her for their wedding night.

   Read the passage
2. 2

   Question 2. Why does Juliet initially believe Romeo is dead?

   • A messenger from the Prince tells her
   • Correct answer: The Nurse says "he's dead" without specifying who
   • She witnesses the fight from her balcony
   • Friar Laurence sends a letter with the news

   The Nurse arrives distraught and wails "he's dead" repeatedly, but her confused delivery fails to clarify that she means Tybalt, not Romeo.

   Read the passage
3. 3

   Question 3. Which literary device is most prominent in Juliet's lines "Beautiful tyrant! fiend angelical! / Dove-feather'd raven! wolvish-ravening lamb!"?

   • Correct answer: Oxymoron
   • Hyperbole
   • Onomatopoeia
   • Simile

   These are oxymorons — figures of speech that combine contradictory terms to express Juliet's conflicting emotions about Romeo.

   Read the passage
4. 4

   Question 4. What triggers Juliet to stop criticizing Romeo and start defending him?

   • Juliet reads a letter from Romeo
   • The Nurse tells her Romeo acted in self-defense
   • Friar Laurence arrives and explains the situation
   • Correct answer: The Nurse says "Shame come to Romeo!"

   When the Nurse agrees with Juliet's criticism and adds her own, Juliet pivots to defend her husband, saying "Blister'd be thy tongue / For such a wish!"

   Read the passage
5. 5

   Question 5. According to Juliet, what is worse than Tybalt's death?

   • Her parents' grief over Tybalt
   • The Prince's threat to execute Romeo
   • The discovery of her secret marriage
   • Correct answer: Romeo's banishment from Verona

   Juliet says "That 'banished,' that one word 'banished,' / Hath slain ten thousand Tybalts," making banishment worse than any death.

   Read the passage
6. 6

   Question 6. What mythological figure does Juliet reference in her opening soliloquy?

   • Orpheus, who traveled to the underworld
   • Icarus, whose wings of wax melted in the sun
   • Correct answer: Phaeton, who crashed the sun god's chariot
   • Prometheus, who stole fire from the gods

   Juliet wishes Phaeton would drive the sun chariot westward quickly, hastening nightfall so she can be with Romeo.

   Read the passage
7. 7

   Question 7. What does Juliet give the Nurse to bring to Romeo?

   • The rope ladder
   • Correct answer: Her ring
   • A vial of poison
   • A letter explaining her feelings

   Juliet gives the Nurse her ring to deliver to Romeo as a token of her love, saying "give this ring to my true knight."

   Read the passage
8. 8

   Question 8. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

   • True or False: In this scene, Juliet learns about Tybalt's death directly from Romeo.

     Didn't happen

     Juliet learns the news from the Nurse, not from Romeo. Romeo is hiding at Friar Laurence's cell throughout the scene.

   • True or False: The Nurse ultimately agrees to go find Romeo and bring him to Juliet.

     Happened

     The Nurse tells Juliet, "Hie to your chamber. I'll find Romeo / To comfort you" and reveals he is hiding at Friar Laurence's cell.

   Read the passage
9. 9

   Question 9. What does "garish" mean in Juliet's line "And pay no worship to the garish sun"?

   • Correct answer: Excessively bright and showy
   • Pleasantly warm and comforting
   • Holy and worthy of worship
   • Dull and slowly fading

   Juliet uses "garish" to describe the sun negatively, contrasting its harsh brightness with the gentle, private darkness of night.

   Read the passage
10. 10

    Question 10. When the Nurse says "I swounded at the sight," what does "swounded" mean?

    • Correct answer: Swooned or fainted
    • Became violently ill
    • Screamed in horror
    • Ran away quickly

    "Swounded" is an archaic form of "swooned," meaning the Nurse fainted at the sight of Tybalt's bloody corpse.

    Read the passage
11. 11

    Question 11. What is a "cockatrice" as referenced in Juliet's speech?

    • A kind of venomous snake native to Italy
    • A type of poisonous flower
    • Correct answer: A mythical serpent whose gaze could kill
    • An ancient weapon used in duels

    The cockatrice is a legendary creature hatched from a cock's egg whose look was said to be lethal. Juliet compares the word "I" (ay/yes) to its deadly gaze.

    Read the passage