AIH KEY PLOT & CONTEXT

Question 1

2 things that best describe Sir Robert Chiltern?

Answer 1

He is well respected by his peers and by the public.

He gained wealth by committing fraud.

Question 2

2 things that best describe Lady Gertrude Chiltern?

Answer 2

She is educated.

She is politically active.

Question 3

2 things that best describe Lord Goring?

Answer 3

He was born into wealth.

He is concerned with fashion, image and appearance.

Question 4

A description of Mrs Cheveley?

Answer 4

She has previously been married.

Question 5

T/F?

The play starts with a party.

Answer 5

T

Question 6

T/F?

Mrs Cheveley has evidence Robert stole money from Baron Arnheim.

Answer 6

F

Question 7

T/F?

Robert initially agrees with Mrs Cheveley’s blackmail demands.

Answer 7

T

Question 8

T/F?

Gertrude Chiltern walks out on Robert when she finds out his past crime in Act 2

Answer 8

F

Question 9

T/F?
Mrs Cheveley and Lord Goring make a bet on whether Robert will do the right thing - if he does, Goring gets the letter; if he doesn’t, Goring marries her.

Answer 9

F

Question 10

T/F?

In Act 3, we see Sir Robert’s speech to Parliament.

Answer 10

F

Question 11

T/F?

Mrs Cheveley steals Lady Chiltern’s letter from Goring’s rooms.

Answer 11

T

Question 12

T/F?

Robert cannot let Mabel marry Goring because he knows Goring has been married before.

Answer 12

F

Question 13

T/F?

Robert burns the letter, destroying the evidence of his crime.

Answer 13

F

Question 14

T/F?

The play ends with Goring and Mabel’s wedding.

Answer 14

F

Question 15

In which century was ‘An Ideal Husband’ first performed?

Answer 15

Late 19th Century

Question 16

In which year was ‘An Ideal Husband’ first performed?

Answer 16

1895

Question 17

T/F?

Queen Victoria had recently come to the throne when the play was written.

Answer 17

F

Question 18

T/F?

The Haymarket Theatre was popular with a large cross-section of society.

Answer 18

F

Question 19

T/F?

The politician Charles Dilke had recently been imprisoned after a fraud scandal.

Answer 19

F

Question 20

T/F?

Wilde wrote ‘An Ideal Husband’ during his prison sentence for ‘gross indecency’.

Answer 20

F

Question 21

T/F?

Wilde wrote controversial essays on politics, society and the role of art.

Answer 21

T

Question 22

T/F?

Wilde was a feminist and campaigned for female suffrage (the right to vote).

Answer 22

F

Question 23

T/F?

The dominant, conventional Victorian ideal of women was as mother and housewife.

Answer 23

T

Question 24

T/F?

The ‘New Woman’ debate argued that men and women should be held to the same moral and sexual standards.

Answer 24

T

Question 25

T/F?
Wilde had no interest in commercial success and was known for doing what he wanted, regardless of public opinion or laws.

Answer 25

F

Question 26

T/F?

Plays in major theatres needed a licence from the Lord Chamberlain in order to be performed

Answer 26

T