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The Tempest, Act I

William Shakespeare

FIRST READ: Comprehension

Identify the choice that best answers the question.

      1. What causes Antonio and the other passengers to desert their ship in Act I of
The Tempest?
a. Prospero uses magic to create a storm and make the passengers believe
the ship is breaking up.
b. The Boatswain refuses to correct the course of the ship, and it runs
aground on the island.
c. Ariel sets the ship on fire, and the passengers must jump off it to save
their lives.
d. Ariel calls on Poseidon to sink the ship, causing all the passengers to
swim for their lives.

      2. According to Act I of The Tempest, why does Ariel willingly serve Prospero
and carry out his commands?
a. because he mistakenly believes Prospero is his father
b. because Prospero uses magic to force his obedience
c. because he knows Prospero’s history and pities him
d. because Prospero rescued him from imprisonment

     3. When Prospero and Miranda were first cast away, who helped them and how?
a. Prospero’s brother, Antonio, by protecting them from the king’s wrath
b. The royal counselor, Gonzalo, by stowing food, water, garments, and
books aboard their small boat
c. King Alonso, by allowing Prospero to go into exile rather than being
hanged
d. Ariel, by teaching Prospero and Miranda survival skills that were useful
on the island

      4. According to Act I of The Tempest, why have Prospero and Miranda turned
against Caliban?
a. because Caliban is malformed
b. because Caliban tried to retake the island
c. because Caliban is the child of a sorceress
d. because Caliban attacked Miranda

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 GRADE 10 • UNIT 5 • SELECTION TEST

THE TEMPEST, ACT I, BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

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      5. According to Act I of The Tempest, which of the following events does Prospero
bring about or plan to bring about? Choose three options.
a. to free Ariel permanently from his service
b. to turn over his rule of the island to Ferdinand
c. to achieve revenge against his brother Antonio
d. to repay Caliban for taking the island away from him
e. to arrange a marriage between Ferdinand and Miranda
f. to drown Antonio, Sebastian, and the other passengers
g. to kill Ferdinand and make himself the new king of Naples

FIRST READ: Concept Vocabulary

Identify the choice that best answers the question.

      6. Which of the following is the best definition of perfidious?

a. serene and calm
b. sorry and ashamed
c. violent and aggressive
d. untrustworthy and dishonest

      7. Which of the following is the best example of treacherous behavior?

a. helping someone recover
b. betraying someone’s trust
c. challenging someone’s statement
d. accepting punishment for someone

      8. What does it mean to usurp a leadership position?

a. to seize it illegally or by force
b. to inherit it by right of birth
c. to pass it on to another person
d. to win it fairly in a free election

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 GRADE 10 • UNIT 5 • SELECTION TEST

THE TEMPEST, ACT I, BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

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CLOSE READ: Analyze the Text

Identify the choice that best answers the question.

      9. In The Tempest, Act I, what does Caliban most likely mean when he tells
Miranda, “You taught me language, and my profit on’t / Is, I know how to
curse”?
a. He means that Miranda did not teach him to read or write, so being able
to speak is of no use to him.
b. He means that Miranda was a poor and unskilled teacher because he
could not learn to speak properly.
c. He means that Miranda has harmed him because she has shown him there
is a wider world beyond his reach.
d. He means that Miranda has taught him to despise himself because he
comes from a questionable background.

     10. When Prospero says in Act I of The Tempest that he has more commands for
Ariel, Ariel protests as follows:
Ariel. Remember, I have done thee worthy service,
Told thee no lies, made thee no mistakings, served
Without or grudge or grumblings. Thou didst promise
To bate me a full year.

What does Ariel’s speech imply about the relationship between him and
Prospero?
a. Ariel knows that he can turn to Prospero for comfort.
b. Ariel believes he can rely on Prospero’s sense of justice.
c. Prospero hopes to adopt Ariel into his family as his heir.
d. Prospero tolerates Ariel’s mischief and enjoys his company.

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 GRADE 10 • UNIT 5 • SELECTION TEST

THE TEMPEST, ACT I, BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

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11. The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.

      Part A Which of the following best characterizes Miranda as Shakespeare

presents her in Act I of The Tempest?
a. deceitful and sly
b. frivolous and silly
c. studious and bookish
d. kind and compassionate

      Part B Which of the following lines of dialogue from the play best supports
the answer to Part A?
a. Miranda. . . . Oh, I have suffered / With those that I saw suffer! A brave
vessel / . . . Dashed all to pieces!
b. Miranda. . . . And now I pray you, sir— / . . . your reason / For raising
this sea storm?
c. Miranda. The strangeness of your story put / Heaviness in me.
d. Miranda. What is’t? A spirit? / Lord, how it looks about! Believe me,
sir, / It carries a brave form.

12. The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.

      Part A Which best explains why Caliban obeys Prospero’s orders in Act I of
The Tempest?
a. because Caliban still hopes to win Miranda’s love
b. because Caliban wants Prospero to leave the island
c. because Caliban and Ariel have a secret plot against Prospero
d. because Caliban knows that Prospero can use magic to force obedience

      Part B Which of the following lines from the play best support the answer to
Part A?
a. Caliban. . . . A southwest blow on ye / And blister you all o’er!
b. Caliban. This island’s mine by Sycorax my mother, / Which thou tak’st
from me. . . .
c. Caliban. For I am all the subjects that you have, / Which first was mine
own king . . .
d. Caliban. . . . His art is of such pow’r / It would control my dam’s god,
Setebos, / And make a vassal of him.

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 GRADE 10 • UNIT 5 • SELECTION TEST

THE TEMPEST, ACT I, BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

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13. The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.

      Part A Aristocrats and commoners mix freely in Act I of The Tempest, both on
the island and on board ship. Which best describes the relations between the
high-ranking aristocrats and the lower-ranking commoners?
a. Commoners address aristocrats politely and respectfully.
b. Aristocrats and commoners avoid contact with one another.
c. Aristocrats express only contempt and scorn for commoners.
d. Commoners speak their minds freely to aristocrats as if equals.

      Part B Which of the following lines of dialogue from the play best supports
the answer to Part A?
a. Boatswain. . . . Hence! What cares these roarers for the name of king? To
cabin! Silence! Trouble us not!
b. Gonzalo. Now would I give a thousand furlongs of sea for an acre of
barren ground—long heath, brown furze, anything. . . .
c. Prospero. Ariel, thy charge / Exactly is performed; but there’s more
work.
d. Miranda. I might call him / A thing divine; for nothing natural / I ever
saw so noble.

CLOSE READ: Analyze Craft and Structure

Identify the choice that best answers the question.

     14. A Shakespearean romance typically features dark themes with hints of

violence. Which of the following best describes a dark and violent theme
Shakespeare introduces in Act I of The Tempest?
a. the wisdom acquired with experience
b. the danger of uncontrolled passions
c. the sweetness of love at first sight
d. the permanence of familial loyalty

     15. A Shakespearean romance typically features an unrealistic plot. Which of the

following aspects of the plot that unfolds in Act I of The Tempest can best be
described as unrealistic?
a. Ferdinand suggests marriage the moment he sees Miranda.
b. Prospero brings up Miranda on his own with love and care.
c. Antonio betrays Prospero and drives him out of Milan.
d. Ariel pleads with Prospero to give him his freedom.

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 GRADE 10 • UNIT 5 • SELECTION TEST

THE TEMPEST, ACT I, BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

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16. The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.

      Part A Read the following excerpt from Act I of The Tempest.
[Enter Alonso, Sebastian, Antonio, Ferdinand, Gonzalo, and others.]
Alonso. Good boatswain, have care. Where’s the master?
Play the men.
Boatswain. I pray now, keep below.
Antonio. Where is the master, bos’n?
Boatswain. Do you not hear him? You mar our labor. Keep your
cabins; you do assist the storm.
Gonzalo. Nay, good, be patient.
Boatswain. When the sea is. Hence! What cares these roarers
for the name of king? To cabin! Silence! Trouble us not!
Gonzalo. Good, yet remember whom thou hast aboard.
Boatswain. None that I more love than myself. You are a
councilor; if you can command these elements to silence and
work the peace of the present, we will not hand a rope more.
Use your authority. If you cannot, give thanks you have lived so long, and make
yourself ready in your cabin for the mischance of the hour, if it so hap. Cheerly,
good hearts! Out of our way, I say.

Which feature of a Shakespearean romance is best illustrated by this excerpt?

a. unrealistic characters and events
b. a subplot featuring young characters
c. a hero or heroine who is older than the others
d. characters representing a variety of social levels

      Part B Which words from the lines from the play best support the answer to
Part A?
a. Where’s the master, bos’n; councilor; authority
b. I pray now; give thanks; good hearts
c. assist the storm; Trouble us not
d. work the peace of the present

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 GRADE 10 • UNIT 5 • SELECTION TEST

THE TEMPEST, ACT I, BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

Name:       Date:      

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT: Word Study

Identify the choice that best answers the question.

     17. Given your knowledge of the suffix -ous, identify the best definition of
glamorous.
a. to take away glamour
b. the opposite of glamour
c. to give or add glamour to
d. having the quality of glamour

     18. Given your knowledge of suffixes, choose the word that means “full of
contempt.”
a. contemptuous
b. contemporary
c. contemplated
d. contemptible

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