EXTEND – Happily ever after? #603258 - Prove ed esercizi Zanichelli

STEP 5 Think further and prepare for your test: the new family

Read the text and decide if the statements are true or false. Then use the text to integrate what you already know about the play for your test. You can use the final text as revision material for your test.

Historians have long studied how families changed in England between 1500 and 1800. By the year 1700, they were becoming more focused on the immediate family – the husband, wife, and children – and less on the extended family of aunts, uncles, and cousins. Marriages started to be seen more as a partnership based on love and affection between the husband and wife. Previously, especially among rich families, marriages were often arranged to improve the family's wealth or social standing.
William Congreve's play The Way of the World, shows this change happening very quickly, in just a few acts. The first part of the play shows Lady Wishfort's family, which is like the older kind of family. It is a rather intricate group of relatives, with many complex relationships. The characters seem to be connected more by what they want for themselves than by real love for each other. Fainall, one of the characters, tries to take advantage of this chaotic family to get their money and ruin their reputation.
In the later part of the play, Mirabell tries to save the family from Fainall. He takes charge, since Lady Wishfort cannot, and tries to bring the family together.
The ending of the play shows the characters coming together around Mirabell and Millamant. This new family unit becomes the centre of the group.

A:

By 1700, the importance of extended family members was decreasing.

B:

Before then, marriages among the wealthy were primarily based on affection for the partner.

C:

Congreve's play cleverly shows the way families are changing in the development of the play.

D:

Lady Wishfort's family is portrayed as a stable and loving group.

E:

Fainall represents those driven by love in marriage.

F:

The union between Mirabell and Millamant shows the movement toward the emerging conjugal family.

Extend

Vero o falso

STEP 1 Skim for gist and find out what happens in the final scene

Read the passage and reorder the sentences to obtain a summary of the main events. Write the correct numbers (1-8 ) in the gaps.

Mirabell returns the deed of trust to Mrs Fainall. ________
Millamant playfully urges Mirabell to take her as his bride. ________
Sir Wilfull suggests a dance to lighten the mood. ________
The play concludes with a warning against marital deception and infidelity. ________
Lady Wishfort is worried about her son-in-law Fainall's potential for desperate actions. ________
He hopes this will help her and Mrs Fainall financially to live comfortably together. ________
Foible – Lady Wishfort's maid – announces that musicians are available. ________
Mirabell assures her that Fainall's financial situation will force him to comply. ________

Extend

Completamento aperto

STEP 4 Focus on Mirabell and Millamant

Read the following sentences and select the ones that best describe Mirabell and Millamant.

A:

Mirabell, while rational, demonstrates a capacity for falling irrationally in love as shown by the words in the extract 'I would have you as often […]'

B:

Mirabell's actions in defending Millamant and the family suggest a deeper commitment rather than self-interest.

C:

Mirabell's primary motivation for marriage is to secure wealth and financial stability.

D:

Mirabell's phrase 'over and over again' express a desire for a constant and enduring love with Millamant.

E:

Mirabell is largely indifferent to the well-being of Lady Wishfort and the rest of the family and is mostly focused on himself.

F:

Millamant's repeated question, 'Why does not the man take me?', despite its playfulness, can be interpreted as a wish for a lasting love.

G:

Millamant is uniquely concerned with maintaining her social status through marriage.

H:

Millamant is presented as someone who will easily conform to societal expectations within marriage.

I:

Millamant's playful wittiness hides her wish for an increasingly important role of women in conjugal relationships.

J:

Millamant, as all the other women in the play, realises that beauty and youth play an important part in seduction and fear ageing.

Extend

Scelta multipla

STEP 3 Spotlight on the final dance

Complete the text on the possible significance of the final dance in the extract of the play with the words given.
In many Restoration comedies, the final dance is not just a moment of entertainment, but a powerful ________. Often, these plays have very complex plots, with many characters and relationships. The dance provides a kind of ________ in the story, allowing the audience to take a breath and reflect on the play's events before the final resolution.
Sometimes, the dance also ________ a marriage. This is because a dance can represent the coming together of two people. In The Way of the World the dance is very important because of the complicated plot and the many changes of partners. It helps to ________ the chaos and bring a sense of order to the end of the play.
The dance also has a symbolic function. It shows a move towards ________ and social agreement. After all the lies and tricks, it offers a moment of shared joy and the promise of a better future. It is a way for the characters, and the audience, to leave the play with a feeling of ________.

Extend

Posizionamento

STEP 2 Scan the passage and focus on details

Read the passage again and choose the correct alternative.

1 Mirabell and Millamant's relationship is primarily characterised by ________.
2 Fainall's actions in his marriage reveal to Lady Wishfort and Mrs Fainall ________.
3 The return of the deed of trust to Mrs Fainall signifies the ________.
4 The play contrasts Mirabell and Millamant's relationship with Fainall and Mrs Fainall's to show that ________.
5 The dance at the end of the play primarily symbolises a ________.

Extend

Completamento chiuso