This Literature quiz is called 'My Mother Said I Never Should - Character' and it has been written by teachers to help you if you are studying the subject at high school. Playing educational quizzes is a user-friendly way to learn if you are in the 9th or 10th grade - aged 14 to 16.
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This high school English Literature quiz will test you on character in My Mother Said I Never Should by Charlotte Keatley. My Mother Said I Never Should is extraordinarily spare in the numbers of characters it has. There are four characters who appear on-stage: Doris, Margaret, Jackie and Rosie. These figures appear as adults (Rosie only reaches the age of sixteen by the end of the play) and as young children. Other important figures are named, but never appear. These are Jack, Ken, and Doris’s mother. In some ways, character is not as important to the play as relationship. Each pair of women has a relationship which is distinguished from that between other pairs, while sharing some similarities.
For example, Doris is much gentler and more affectionate with her granddaughter and great-granddaughter than she is with Margaret at any stage of Margaret’s life. At the same time, Margaret speaks to her mother with an impatience similar to Jackie’s when speaking to her.
Because this text is a play, the audience will understand characters through their dialog and behavior. There is no narration or extraneous material in the play, but it is important to read the stage directions which inform the actors what actions should be performed on stage. Pay close attention to the scenes set in the Wasteground. Keatley describes these figures of the children as representing the “core” of their adult characters.
When reading any work of fiction, pay careful attention to how characters interact with each other, as well as how they reveal their private thoughts. Consider whether you can see development over time: do the characters change, and how? My Mother Said I Never Should skips around through time, showing the audience key events in the shared lives of the women. How do the women change between scenes? How does the structure of the play reveal their characteristics and the important moments which shape their lives? Do any of their characteristics remain constant over time, or in the timeless space of the Wasteground?
Answer the questions below to see how well you understand the characters in My Mother Said I Never Should.
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1.
|
MARGARET: I'm very sorry Mummy.
DORIS: Mother.
What does Doris's response to her daughter tell the audience about her character? |
|
[ ] |
She maintains formal relationships within the family |
[ ] |
She does not love her daughter |
[ ] |
She does not feel that Margaret is really her daughter |
[ ] |
She believes that Margaret does not love her |
|
|
2.
|
In Act One, Scene Four, Margaret announces to an empty room that she went out for a meal with an admirer despite being married. How does this relate to her actions later in the play? |
|
[ ] |
Margaret only speaks when no one else is present |
[ ] |
Margaret later leaves her husband |
[ ] |
Margaret keeps her deepest secrets to herself |
[ ] |
All of the above |
|
|
3.
|
Who accuses her mother of having "hang ups" about sex? |
|
[ ] |
Rosie |
[ ] |
Jackie |
[ ] |
Margaret |
[ ] |
Doris |
|
|
4.
|
Which of the following does NOT describe Rosie? |
|
[ ] |
Lively |
[ ] |
Thoughtless |
[ ] |
Bold |
[ ] |
Passionate |
|
|
5.
|
MARGARET: You've got such opportunities.
JACKIE: Expectations.
MARGARET: Yes!
JACKIE: Yours.
Which of the following best describes Margaret here? |
|
[ ] |
Encouraging |
[ ] |
Ambitious |
[ ] |
Unfair |
[ ] |
All of the above |
|
|
6.
|
"I never did ask for what I wanted. Resentment is a terrible thing, Jackie. You don't want to be resenting somebody at the end of your life." Of whom is Doris thinking here? |
|
[ ] |
Rosie |
[ ] |
Ken |
[ ] |
Jack |
[ ] |
Her mother |
|
|
7.
|
In Act Three, Scene Two, Rosie returns from holiday and is described as wearing "sophisticated holiday clothes". Why is this significant? |
|
[ ] |
Rosie's clothing reflects Jackie's taste |
[ ] |
Margaret will not allow Rosie to grow up and keeps her dressed in childish clothing |
[ ] |
Rosie is reverting to the style of her great-grandmother, who is described as dressing stylishly |
[ ] |
Rosie always wears sophisticated clothing |
|
|
8.
|
In the same scene, Rosie describes Jackie's behavior as restless. Which of the following lines gives this impression? |
|
[ ] |
"Sometimes you have to be a bit silly with Jackie" |
[ ] |
"We spent a whole day trekking round museums but she could never find the picture she wanted" |
[ ] |
"Jackie got the kite to do a perfect circle in the sky" |
[ ] |
"She's so useless at most things" |
|
|
9.
|
Faced with Jackie's return from holiday, Margaret grumbles that Rosie is overtired, that she won't have a chance to rest before school starts and that all her clothes need washing. What is the motivation for Margaret's grumbles? |
|
[ ] |
Jealousy |
[ ] |
Terror |
[ ] |
Anger |
[ ] |
Hatred |
|
|
10.
|
In the final scene, Doris tells her mother about Jack's proposal. What emotion does she most strongly convey in the scene? |
|
[ ] |
Surprise |
[ ] |
Excitement |
[ ] |
Hope |
[ ] |
All of the above |
|
|
1.
|
MARGARET: I'm very sorry Mummy.
DORIS: Mother.
What does Doris's response to her daughter tell the audience about her character? |
|
[x] |
She maintains formal relationships within the family |
[ ] |
She does not love her daughter |
[ ] |
She does not feel that Margaret is really her daughter |
[ ] |
She believes that Margaret does not love her |
|
|
2.
|
In Act One, Scene Four, Margaret announces to an empty room that she went out for a meal with an admirer despite being married. How does this relate to her actions later in the play? |
|
[ ] |
Margaret only speaks when no one else is present |
[ ] |
Margaret later leaves her husband |
[x] |
Margaret keeps her deepest secrets to herself |
[ ] |
All of the above |
|
|
3.
|
Who accuses her mother of having "hang ups" about sex? |
|
[ ] |
Rosie |
[x] |
Jackie |
[ ] |
Margaret |
[ ] |
Doris |
|
|
4.
|
Which of the following does NOT describe Rosie? |
|
[ ] |
Lively |
[x] |
Thoughtless |
[ ] |
Bold |
[ ] |
Passionate |
|
|
5.
|
MARGARET: You've got such opportunities.
JACKIE: Expectations.
MARGARET: Yes!
JACKIE: Yours.
Which of the following best describes Margaret here? |
|
[ ] |
Encouraging |
[ ] |
Ambitious |
[ ] |
Unfair |
[x] |
All of the above |
|
|
6.
|
"I never did ask for what I wanted. Resentment is a terrible thing, Jackie. You don't want to be resenting somebody at the end of your life." Of whom is Doris thinking here? |
|
[ ] |
Rosie |
[ ] |
Ken |
[x] |
Jack |
[ ] |
Her mother |
|
|
7.
|
In Act Three, Scene Two, Rosie returns from holiday and is described as wearing "sophisticated holiday clothes". Why is this significant? |
|
[x] |
Rosie's clothing reflects Jackie's taste |
[ ] |
Margaret will not allow Rosie to grow up and keeps her dressed in childish clothing |
[ ] |
Rosie is reverting to the style of her great-grandmother, who is described as dressing stylishly |
[ ] |
Rosie always wears sophisticated clothing |
|
|
8.
|
In the same scene, Rosie describes Jackie's behavior as restless. Which of the following lines gives this impression? |
|
[ ] |
"Sometimes you have to be a bit silly with Jackie" |
[x] |
"We spent a whole day trekking round museums but she could never find the picture she wanted" |
[ ] |
"Jackie got the kite to do a perfect circle in the sky" |
[ ] |
"She's so useless at most things" |
|
|
9.
|
Faced with Jackie's return from holiday, Margaret grumbles that Rosie is overtired, that she won't have a chance to rest before school starts and that all her clothes need washing. What is the motivation for Margaret's grumbles? |
|
[x] |
Jealousy |
[ ] |
Terror |
[ ] |
Anger |
[ ] |
Hatred |
|
|
10.
|
In the final scene, Doris tells her mother about Jack's proposal. What emotion does she most strongly convey in the scene? |
|
[ ] |
Surprise |
[ ] |
Excitement |
[ ] |
Hope |
[x] |
All of the above |
|
|