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Review for Julius Caesar Acts I-V

Multiple Choice

Identify the letter of the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.

Comprehension

The questions below refer to the selection "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act I.”

Act I is where we meet the cast of characters: Caesar is full of plans, Brutus is worried about Caesar’s

ambitions, Cassius wants to persuade Brutus to kill Caesar, and Antony is going to run a race.

____ 1. When we first see Brutus, he appears to be —

a. envious of Caesar c. scornful of all politicians

b. at war with himself; agitated d. timid and elderly

____ 2. Which line, spoken by the Soothsayer, from Act I foreshadows what will happen to Caesar?

a. ―yet, if you be out, sir, I can mend you‖

b. ―You blocks, you stones, you worse than senseless things!‖

c. ―Beware the ides of March.‖

d. ―for the eye sees not itself / But by reflection, by some other things‖

____ 3. Cassius states,

Men at some time are masters of their fates:

The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,

But in ourselves, that we are underlings [lesser men].

From this you can infer that Cassius —

a. believes that fate determines the outcome of one’s life

b. implies that Caesar does not deserve to be their master

c. thinks that it is up to them to change their status, and what they do not like

d. wants Brutus to know that they are destined for greatness

____ 4. In Scene 3, the night before Caesar’s death, Cicero says to Casca, ―this disturbèd sky / Is not to

walk in.‖ Other than the actual weather, Cicero refers to the fact that he —

a. is afraid of other kinds of natural phenomena like earthquakes

b. wants no part in the conspiracy against Caesar

c. prefers to walk alone through the streets of Rome

d. agrees with Casca about the meaning of storms

Literary Focus

The questions below refer to the selection "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act I.”

Act I is where we meet the cast of characters: Caesar is full of plans, Brutus is worried about Caesar’s

ambitions, Cassius wants to persuade Brutus to kill Caesar, and Antony is going to run a race.

____ 5. Cassius’s character can best be described as —

a. noble or gentlemanly c. sneaky or cunning

b. idealistic d. honest

Comprehension

The questions below refer to the selection "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act II.”

This Act is where the plot is stirred up. Brutus thinks about killing Caesar. Caesar’s wife has dire dreams.

Decius Brutus comes to persuade Caesar to come to the Forum. Portia worries about Brutus and sends for

news of him.

____ 6. As Act II progresses, Portia becomes more —

a. concerned about her health

b. sympathetic to the soothsayer’s reports

c. anxious over Brutus’s plans

d. convinced that Caesar should accept the crown

____ 7. Cassius influences Brutus in all of the following actions except the —

a. decision to keep Cicero out of the conspiracy

b. realization that others hold Brutus in high regard

c. agreement that all of the conspirators are trustworthy

d. decision that Antony should also be murdered

____ 8. Casca observes three omens on the night of the meeting between Cassius and Brutus; choose the correct

answer naming one:

a. blood flowing from the statue of Caesar c. Pompey walking the streets of Rome

b. ripened fruit rotting under trees d. a lion walking in the Capitol

____ 9. Brutus compares Caesar to a newly hatched serpent to show that Caesar is —

a. Rome’s greatest leader c. an emperor capable of becoming a tyrant

b. corrupt and destructive d. ineffective but honorable

Literary Focus

The questions below refer to the selection "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act II.”

This Act is where the plot is stirred up. Brutus thinks about killing Caesar. Caesar’s wife has dire dreams.

Decius Brutus comes to persuade Caesar to come to the Forum. Portia worries about Brutus and sends for

news of him. Later she speaks to Lucius about Brutus.

____ 10. Act II includes the rising action of the play, which is —

a. the changing of sets to another time or place

b. a series of complications in the plot

c. the introduction of a main character

d. clues to the play’s theme or message

____ 11. When Portia delivers a soliloquy at the end of Act II, —

a. she stands alone and reveals her feelings about Brutus

b. Lucius is onstage, but not all of her speech is directed to him

c. Lucius receives clear instructions about how to help Brutus

d. she admits that Calphurnia’s dream interpretation is correct

Comprehension

The questions below refer to the selection "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act III.”

Caesar ignores warnings about his death. The conspirators kill him. Antony asks to speak.

Brutus and Antony both give funeral speeches. Cinna, the poet is mistaken for a conspirator and

is killed by a mob.

____ 12. The conspirator who first prevents Artemidorus from warning Caesar is —

a. Brutus c. Cicero

b. Decius d. Cassius

____ 13. Caesar’s dying words express —

a. regret for not having followed Calphurnia’s advice

b. sorrow over murdering Pompey before returning to Rome

c. love for the Roman people he hoped to serve as king

d. surprise that Brutus is one of the assassins

____ 14. Immediately after Caesar’s death, Antony sends a servant to Brutus to —

a. report that he is ill

b. ask whether he can safely speak to Rome

c. collect Caesar’s body

d. declare his love for Brutus and to ask for an explanation

____ 15. Among the conspirators the one who warns Brutus that Antony will scheme against them is—

a. Decius c. Casca

b. Cassius d. Metellus

____ 16. Antony says to the assembled mob,

Good friends, sweet friends, let me not stir you up

To such a sudden flood of mutiny.

By saying this, Antony —

a. actually moves the mob toward thoughts of mutiny against the conspirators

b. calms down the plebeians and creates a peaceful atmosphere in Rome

c. supports the conspirators by justifying their action against Caesar

d. expresses his hope that Rome will be destroyed by a terrible storm

Literary Focus

The questions below refer to the selection "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act III.”

This Act is where the plot is stirred up. Brutus thinks about killing Caesar. Caesar’s wife has dire dreams.

Decius Brutus comes to persuade Caesar to come to the Forum. Portia worries about Brutus and sends for

news of him. Later she speaks to Lucius about Brutus

____ 17. The turning point but not the climax of the play occurs when —

a. Caesar is assassinated

b. Brutus allows Antony to speak

c. Brutus makes his own speech

d. Antony speaks at Caesar’s funeral audience

Comprehension

The questions below refer to the selection "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act IV.”

Act IV is when Antony, Octavius, and Lepidus form the Triumvirate (3man ruling group) and decide who to

get rid of. They gather armies to fight Cassius and Brutus. Cassius and Brutus argue but refrain from killing

each other. Brutus sees the evil spirit, Caesar’s ghost. Portia commits suicide, swallowing fire.

____ 18. Brutus is motivated mainly by thoughts of —

a. honor c. power

b. friendship d. Rome

____ 19. In his treatment of Cassius, Brutus is characterized as —

a. arrogant and condescending c. carefree and fun loving

b. cynical and punishing d. righteous but forgiving

____ 20. Portia commits suicide by:

a. dagger c. diving off a cliff

b. swallowing fire d. poisoning

____ 21. ―Brutus was the last to raise his dagger and plunge it into Caesar’s cloak, narrowly missing the watch in his

pouch.‖ In the preceding sentence, the anachronism (a modern object found in the wrong time)

is the —

a. dagger c. cloak

b. pouch d. watch

Literary Focus

The questions below refer to the selection "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act IV.”

Act IV is when Antony, Octavius, and Lepidus form the Triumvirate (3man ruling group) and decide who to

get rid of. They gather armies to fight Cassius and Brutus. Cassius and Brutus argue but refrain from killing

each other. Brutus sees the evil spirit, Caesar’s ghost. Portia commits suicide, swallowing fire.

____ 22. In the last part of Act IV, before the armies leave for the battle at Phillipi, the main characters —

a. provide background for the resolution c. experience a turning point

b. get deeper into trouble d. become involved in the plot’s climax

____ 23. The appearance of Caesar’s ghost is an example of —

a. understatement c. hyperbole

b. characterization d. foreshadowing

Comprehension

The questions below refer to the selections "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act V” and “The Fear and the

Flames.” Act V is when Brutus, Cassius, and Antony meet and speak angrily. Cassius and Brutus return to

their armies. Cassius thinks his good friend, Tintinius is taken and so has Pindarus kill him(Cassius’suicide).

Brutus eventually gives up and falls on the sword of Strato. Antony finds Brutus and declares him to be the

most noble Roman of all.

____ 24. In Scene 1, Act V, lines 46–47, before the armies meet on the battlefield, Cassius says to Octavius,

This tongue had not offended so today,

If Cassius might have ruled.

Cassius means that they would not be having their present conversation if —

a. Brutus had agreed with Cassius to murder Antony

b. Cassius and Brutus had not mended their friendship

c. Caesar had not been assassinated

d. Brutus had fought without first engaging in conversation

____ 25. The arguments, battles, and deaths in the final act take care to —

a. suggest that Rome will again be free and happy

b. indicate that power always destroys itself

c. make clear the tragic irony in Brutus’s motives

d. destroy the reputations of Brutus and Cassius

Review for Julius Caesar Act I-V Answer Section

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. ANS: B

2. ANS: C

3. ANS: C

4. ANS: B

5. ANS: C

6. ANS: C

7. ANS: D

8. ANS: D

9. ANS: C

10. ANS: B

11. ANS: B

12. ANS: B

13. ANS: D

14. ANS: D

15. ANS: B

16. ANS: A

17. ANS: B

18. ANS: A

19. ANS: D

20. ANS: B

21. ANS: D

22. ANS: B

23. ANS: D

24. ANS: A

25. ANS: C