Julius Caesar: Act 2 – MCQs (30 Questions)
- On what date does Act 2 take place?
a) March 14
b) March 15 (the Ides of March)
c) March 16
d) February 15 - Where is the opening scene of Act 2 set?
a) Caesar's house
b) The Senate House
c) Brutus's orchard/garden
d) A public street - Why cannot Brutus sleep in Scene 1?
a) He is ill
b) He is excited about going to the Senate
c) He is troubled by thoughts of conspiracy against Caesar
d) He is afraid of lightning - What does Cassius send to Brutus?
a) A letter signed with his name
b) An unsigned letter left for Brutus to find, encouraging him to act against Caesar
c) Money
d) A weapon - What is Brutus's response to the conspirators' suggestion to also kill Mark Antony?
a) He agrees enthusiastically
b) He is unsure
c) He rejects the plan; he will only kill Caesar
d) He refuses to kill anyone - What does Brutus refuse to do when the conspirators suggest it?
a) Accept their friendship
b) Swear an oath—he says "No, not an oath"
c) Go to Caesar's house
d) Speak against Caesar - Who is Portia?
a) Caesar's wife
b) Cassius's wife
c) Brutus's wife
d) Antony's wife - What does Portia do to prove her loyalty and worthiness to know secrets?
a) She writes a letter
b) She cries
c) She inflicts a wound on her thigh, showing she can bear pain
d) She threatens Brutus - What does Portia say demonstrates her loyalty to Brutus?
a) "I am weak"
b) "I kept a man's secret" / she has proven herself capable of keeping confidences
c) "I am afraid"
d) "I love Caesar" - In Scene 2, what keeps Caesar awake at night?
a) Thunder and lightning
b) Thoughts of the Senate meeting
c) Calpurnia's nightmares where she cries out "They murder Caesar!"
d) Excitement about becoming king - How many times does Calpurnia cry out in her sleep about Caesar's murder?
a) Once
b) Twice
c) Three times
d) Four times - What does Caesar order a servant to do?
a) Guard the house
b) Have priests perform a sacrifice and bring back their opinions
c) Fetch Calpurnia
d) Close the gates - What omens does Calpurnia report of the night before?
a) Fire only
b) Earthquake only
c) A lioness giving birth in streets, graves yielding dead, ghosts shrieking, horses neighing
d) Only rain and wind - What does Calpurnia dream that Caesar's statue does?
a) Collapses
b) Runs with blood like a fountain with hundred spouts, and Romans bathe their hands in blood
c) Speaks to her
d) Becomes invisible - How does Caesar initially respond to Calpurnia's pleas to stay home?
a) He immediately agrees
b) He refuses, saying "Caesar shall forth" - things that threaten him never look at his face
c) He is uncertain
d) He refuses to discuss it - What excuse does Calpurnia suggest Caesar give for not attending Senate?
a) He has a prior engagement
b) He is ill/sick
c) He is afraid
d) He is meeting with friends - How does Caesar respond to Calpurnia's suggestion that he lie about being ill?
a) He agrees readily
b) He becomes angry
c) He refuses to lie; "Shall Caesar tell a lie?"
d) He ignores her - Who arrives to fetch Caesar for the Senate?
a) Mark Antony
b) Decius Brutus
c) Cassius
d) Brutus Ligarius - What crucial information does Decius tell Caesar?
a) The Senate is canceled
b) The Senate plans to offer Caesar a crown that day
c) Caesar has been betrayed
d) Calpurnia is ill - How does Decius reinterpret Calpurnia's dream?
a) As a sign of death
b) As meaningless
c) As a favorable sign that Romans will gain "reviving blood" from Caesar; great men shall press for relics
d) As a warning of fire - What is Caesar's reaction after Decius's reinterpretation of the dream and news of the crown?
a) He continues to fear
b) He tells Calpurnia: "How foolish do your fears seem now, Calpurnia! I am ashamed I did yield to them"
c) He remains uncertain
d) He refuses to go - What concern does Caesar express about staying home due to his wife's fears?
a) That she will be angry
b) That his reputation will suffer; senators might think he is easily swayed by a woman
c) That he will miss the Senate
d) That the gods will be displeased - Who escorts Caesar to the Senate House?
a) Only Decius
b) Only the conspirators
c) Publius, Brutus, Ligarius, Metellus, Casca, Trebonius, Cinna, and Mark Antony
d) Only his servants - What is Artemidorus's role in Scene 3?
a) A conspirator
b) A senator
c) A man who wrote a letter warning Caesar about conspirators and waits to give it to him
d) A servant - What is Portia's mental state in Scene 4?
a) Calm and peaceful
b) Anxious about Brutus and the conspiracy; she sends a servant to observe events at Senate
c) Angry
d) Indifferent - What does the Soothsayer tell Portia in Scene 4?
a) Caesar is safe
b) Caesar has already gone to the Capitol
c) Caesar has not yet gone; the Soothsayer waits to speak to Caesar along his route
d) Caesar will not go - How do the conspirators arrive at Brutus's house in Scene 1?
a) In broad daylight
b) Openly and noisily
c) Disguised with hats pulled down and faces buried in cloaks
d) On horseback - What time does Lucius report in Act 2, Scene 1?
a) Dawn
b) Noon
c) March is wasted—fourteen days have passed
d) Midnight - What is the primary contrast Shakespeare establishes between Portia and Calpurnia in Act 2?
a) One is kind, one is cruel
b) One is young, one is old
c) Portia asserts her equality and demands to be involved; Calpurnia tries to protect Caesar but is overruled
d) One is Roman, one is not - What is the overall dramatic purpose of Act 2?
a) To show Caesar becoming more powerful
b) To establish that Brutus joins conspiracy while Caesar ignores multiple warnings of danger
c) To show the conspirators' fear
d) To prove Caesar is wise
Answers: 1-b, 2-c, 3-c, 4-b, 5-c, 6-b, 7-c, 8-c, 9-b, 10-c, 11-c, 12-b, 13-c, 14-b, 15-b, 16-b, 17-c, 18-b, 19-b, 20-c, 21-b, 22-b, 23-c, 24-c, 25-b, 26-c, 27-c, 28-b, 29-c, 30-b.