What is the purpose of the given() method in REST Assured?

• A. To define the response type.
• B. To initiate the request specification.
• C. To set the request body.
• D. To parse the response.

Answer: (B)

The given() method in REST Assured is used to initiate the request specification. This method serves as a starting point for building a request in the Fluent Assert style provided by REST Assured. By calling given(), you create a context in which you can define various aspects of the request, such as headers, query parameters, form parameters, and the request body. It sets the stage for what the request should include before sending it out to the server.

Once you have defined the necessary specifications using the given() method, you can then chain additional methods to construct the complete request, such as when() to specify the HTTP method and then when you want to actually execute the request, you would use methods like get(), post(), etc. This method is integral to the request-building process within the REST Assured framework, as it clearly separates the setup of request parameters from the actual invocation of the request and the subsequent handling of the response.