22-07-2016, 01:02 PM
Please read the following passage which is taken from the book More Tales from Shakespeare and answer the questions based on what is stated or implied in it./0
Leontes, King of Sicily, and his queen, the lovely Hermione, once lived together in the greatest happiness.The love that they felt for each other made Leontes so happy that he had nothing left to wish for, except that he sometimes desired to see again his old companion and school friend, Polixenes, King of Bohemia, and to introduce his friend to his queen./1
Leontes and Polixenes had been brought up together as children, but after the deaths of their fathers, each one had to rule his own kingdom. So they had not met for many years, though they often exchanged gifts, letters and loving messages./2
At last, after repeated invitations, Polixenes came from Bohemia to the Sicilian court to pay his friend Leontes a visit. At first this visit gave nothing but pleasure to Leontes. He begged the queen to show special care and attention to his dear friend and he seemed to have found perfect happiness now that he was with his old companion. They talked about old times; they remembered their schooldays and their youthful games. They told stories of these to Hermione, who always took a cheerful part in these conversations./3
a. Why was Leontes initially so happy?/4
b. Did Leontes and Polixenes stay in touch in the years before they met as adults?/5
c. Who is the bolded ‘he’ in the third paragraph referring to?/6
Leontes, King of Sicily, and his queen, the lovely Hermione, once lived together in the greatest happiness.The love that they felt for each other made Leontes so happy that he had nothing left to wish for, except that he sometimes desired to see again his old companion and school friend, Polixenes, King of Bohemia, and to introduce his friend to his queen./1
Leontes and Polixenes had been brought up together as children, but after the deaths of their fathers, each one had to rule his own kingdom. So they had not met for many years, though they often exchanged gifts, letters and loving messages./2
At last, after repeated invitations, Polixenes came from Bohemia to the Sicilian court to pay his friend Leontes a visit. At first this visit gave nothing but pleasure to Leontes. He begged the queen to show special care and attention to his dear friend and he seemed to have found perfect happiness now that he was with his old companion. They talked about old times; they remembered their schooldays and their youthful games. They told stories of these to Hermione, who always took a cheerful part in these conversations./3
a. Why was Leontes initially so happy?/4
b. Did Leontes and Polixenes stay in touch in the years before they met as adults?/5
c. Who is the bolded ‘he’ in the third paragraph referring to?/6
BASc Electrical Engineering, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
