Colegio Beato Carlos Manuel Rodríguez
Bayamón Puerto Rico
English Department
Prof. Denisse Rosario Blanco
Name: ____________________________
Take- home: The Crucible
Date: _______________________
______/80pts.
Multiple Choice: Read the following questions and then choose the correct answer. (2pts. each)
1. Based on the background exposition from The Crucible, Act I that describes children
who had to “walk straight, eyes slightly lowered . . . mouths shut until bidden to speak,” what
kind of life do you think children in Salem had?
A. joyful
B. wild
C. joyless
D. educated
2. What is the setting of The Crucible?
A. Salem, Massachusetts, today
B. England today
C. England in the 1600s
D. Salem, Massachusetts, in the 1600s
3.In The Crucible, Act I, Reverend Parris acts concerned about his daughter. What is the real
reason for his concern?
A. fear that she will lose her soul
B. fear for his reputation
C. fear that she will die
D. fear that he will become ill
4. According to The Crucible, Act I, what did Puritans believe about slaves?
A. They believed slaves would fight for freedom.
B. They believed slaves should be freed.
C. They believed slaves were uncivilized.
D. They believed slaves were their equals.
5. In The Crucible, Act I, what frightening reason drives Mrs. Putnam to hunt for
witches?
A. anger at Reverend Parris
B. curiosity about the woods
C. the deaths of her children
D. sympathy for the ill children
6. In The Crucible, Act I, which of the young women has the most influence over the others?
A. Mercy
B. Tituba
C. Abigail
D. Mary
7. In The Crucible, Act I, what can the reader infer about Salem, based on the fact that Reverend
Hale asks Giles why his wife is hiding books and reading them?
A. Salem residents were well educated.
B. Reading books was a suspicious activity.
C. More women read books than men.
D. Women and men read books together.
8. Based on The Crucible, Act I, what seems to motivate Abigail’s actions?
A. her wish to protect her uncle
B. her wish to help Betty
C. her wish to leave Salem
D. her wish to have power
9. In The Crucible, Act I, why is John Proctor guilty about Abigail?
A. He has refused to hire her.
B. He has seduced and abandoned her.
C. He has accused her of witchcraft.
D. He has thrown her out of the church.
10. Someone would most likely be trying to evade the authorities if he
A. had just witnessed a crime.
B. had just robbed a bank.
C. wanted to run for political office.
D. had just been mugged on the street.
11. At the beginning of The Crucible, Act II, what is the relationship between the Proctors?
A. difficult
B. trusting
C. comfortable
D. affectionate
12. In The Crucible, Act II, what does John Proctor mean when he says to Elizabeth that no
matter what he does, “an everlasting funeral marches around” her heart?
A. He fears she wishes he were dead.
B. She is always sad, whatever he does.
C. He wants to move and she doesn’t.
D. She goes to too many funerals.
13. In The Crucible, Act II, what does Mary mean to suggest when she says that the crowd parted
for Abigail like the Red Sea parted for the people of Israel?
A. She compares Abigail’s power to the power of Moses.
B. She compares Abigail’s power to the power of witches.
C. She compares Abigail’s power to the power of a queen.
D. She compares Abigail’s power to the size of the Red Sea.
14. In The Crucible, Act II, what do these stage directions: with a smile, to keep her dignity,
reveal about Elizabeth’s character?
A. She is always cheerful and dignified.
B. She thinks it is undignified to show anger.
C. She smiles all of the time.
D. She is tired of trying to be dignified.
15. What is John suggesting about Mary Warren when he says “It’s strange work for a Christian
girl to hang old women” in The Crucible, Act II?
A. Mary is getting to be powerful.
B. Mary is religious.
C. Mary is leaving the church.
D. Mary is dangerous.
16. In The Crucible, Act II, Hale is in shock when the beloved Rebecca Nurse is accused. What
does he mean when he alludes to the Devil, saying that: “an hour before the Devil fell, God
thought him beautiful in Heaven”?
A. Beauty and goodness are not the same.
B. God’s will is not for humans to know.
C. Evil can masquerade as Good.
D. God’s opinions are unimportant.
17. What do you learn about John’s character in The Crucible, Act II, based on the stage
directions that read “[he] is striving against his disgust with HALE and with himself for even
answering”?
A. He has the answers but hides them.
B. He is often in conflict with himself.
C. His feelings for Hale are scornful.
D. He does not have the answers he needs.
18. What is the “poppet” that is used in The Crucible?
A. It is a toy made for children.
B. It is a tool of witchcraft.
C. It is a gift from woman to woman.
D. It is evidence that one is religious.
19. In The Crucible, Act II, Hale appears at the Proctors’ door and is described as “different
now—drawn a little, and there is a quality . . . even of guilt, about his manner now.” What do
these stage directions allow you to predict about Hale’s future actions?
A. He will be completely comfortable with all of his actions.
B. He will continue to respect the Proctors but will still believe they are guilty.
C. He will become exhausted by his work and will want to quit.
D. He will be increasingly disturbed by what he has seen in court.
20. Why does Proctor think Abigail accuses his wife of witchcraft in The Crucible, Act II?
A. to show Salem how much power she has
B. to make John pay for rejecting her
C. to punish Elizabeth for firing her
D. to distract attention from her own sins
21. As The Crucible, Act III begins, what categories do Martha and Hawthorne represent?
A. Christians and non-Christians
B. liars and people who do not lie
C. accusers and those who are accused
D. witches and non-witches
22. Why does John Proctor bring Mary Warren to court in The Crucible, Act III?
A. to prove he does not believe in witches
B. to prove the court is not a just court
C. to save Elizabeth from judgment
D. to show that Parris is a fraud
23. How does Proctor behave toward Danforth during his questioning in The Crucible, Act III?
A. joyfully
B. meanly
C. lovingly
D. respectfully
24. Which of these characters in The Crucible, Act III unknowingly does harm by cooperating in
an unjust process?
A. Ezekiel Cheever
B. Mary Warren
C. John Proctor
D. Reverend Parris
25. Why is Giles Corey’s refusal to name names important in The Crucible, Act III?
A. It shows him to be someone guilty of non-cooperation.
B. It shows that he is the one who acts honorably, not the court.
C. It shows that he does not have as much knowledge as he thought.
D. It shows that the court has asked him a question too difficult to answer.
26. Why does John Proctor say to Frances Nurse in The Crucible, Act III that he wishes she had
some “evil” in her so that she could “know” him?
A. He wishes she were not so good, because she makes him look bad.
B. He wishes she were evil so that she would be arrested.
C. He wishes he had never met her, because she hates him.
D. He wishes she were enough like him so she understood him.
27. Why is Elizabeth’s denial that John is lustful an example of dramatic irony in The Crucible,
Act III?
A. She says it to protect John but ends up condemning him.
B. She says it to keep herself from being embarrassed in public.
C. She says it because she does not know he has been unfaithful.
D. She says it to prove that Abigail is unimportant to John.
28. In The Crucible, Act III, why does Mary Warren change her testimony and join Abigail and
the other girls?
A. She is tormented by Danforth’s questions and accusations.
B. She is frightened when Abigail pretends to be attacked by Mary’s spirit.
C. She is disgusted by Proctor’s admission of his relationship with Abigail.
D. She is afraid that Abigail will no longer be her friend.
29. Why is the use of the phrase “out of her infinite charity” to describe Abigail an example of
dramatic irony in The Crucible, Act III?
A. The audience is unaware of Abigail’s true character.
B. The audience is completely aware of Abigail’s true character.
C. The audience realizes that Abigail has become a better person.
D. The audience expects Abigail to accuse Mary of witchcraft.
30. Based on the evidence presented through Act III of The Crucible, which of the following best
characterizes the claim that Abigail and the Reverend Parris are the two most villainous
characters in the play?
A. There is not enough evidence to decide this claim one way or another.
B. The evidence clearly points instead to Proctor and Hale as the true villains.
C. The claim is false, because Abigail and the Reverend Parris are actually sincerely concerned
for the welfare of others.
D. Based on the evidence presented, the claim is sound.
31. What is the setting of The Crucible, Act IV?
A. the Proctors’ home
B. the Salem jail
C. the woods outside of town
D. the judge’s chambers
32. Which situation in The Crucible, Act IV symbolizes the message that unjust use of the law
destroys communities?
A. Cows have no farmers to care for them.
B. Abigail and Mercy disappear from sight.
C. Tituba plans to visit Barbados.
D. Hale wishes for Rebecca’s confession.
33. Why does Danforth treat Parris with contempt in The Crucible, Act IV?
A. He thinks Parris is committed to mercy.
B. He thinks Parris a fool to believe Abigail.
C. He thinks Parris cares only for himself.
D. He thinks Parris wants only to get rich.
34. In The Crucible, Act IV, Danforth plans to execute prisoners quickly. What theme is the
author suggesting about the use of law that might also be applied to today’s world?
A. Justice is served by quick sentencing.
B. Judges must act quickly in all cases.
C. The law is not always just.
D. Laws are made to be broken.
35. In The Crucible, Act IV, what can the reader infer from the situation in Andover, where
people have refused to cooperate with the witchcraft court?
A. Andover is a community without law.
B. Andover is fighting the hysteria.
C. All Andover’s witches have fled.
D. Danforth will have to go to Andover.
36. Which event provides the moment of climax in The Crucible, Act IV?
A. Abigail’s disappearance from Salem
B. Elizabeth’s appearance in John’s cell
C. John’s refusal to sign the confession
D. Parris’s plea to Elizabeth
37. In The Crucible, Act IV, John’s destruction of the confession conveys what key message?
A. Individuals are stronger than courts.
B. Forgiveness is found even in courtrooms.
C. One’s honor cannot be signed away.
D. Justice can be assured with documents.
38. How does the result of Proctor’s refusal to sign away his honor in The Crucible, Act IV,
compare to the result of people’s refusal to testify during the McCarthy era of the 1950s?
A. Fear of imprisonment made many people keep silent.
B. People’s lives were destroyed when they refused to testify.
C. The Salem accusers were found to be Communists.
D. People who testified against others in the 1950s were heroes.
39. Danforth’s behavior in The Crucible, Act IV, exemplifies which of these truths?
A. Justice is served by the legal process.
B. Judges always rule for the good of all.
C. Confession is good for the soul.
D. The powerful act to preserve power.
40. How does Elizabeth show that she understands John at the end of The Crucible, Act IV?
A. She does not plead to be present at his execution.
B. She knows honor is more important to him than his life.
C. She demands that he confess so that they may both live.
D. She asks that he forgive her for her lack of trust.