Literature Trivia Questions — page 14
1,195 trivia questions with answers, all ages. Multiple-choice trivia with answers, sorted by topic and level. Reveal the answers below, pick one at random, or present them full-screen.
- 651.
In this bestseller, based on a real case and written by Joe McGinnis, Jeffrey MacDonald is accused of killing his pregnant wife and two young daughters.
- A'The Thin Man'
- B'Red Harvest'
- C'The Big Knockover'
- D'Fatal Vision'
Answer: 'Fatal Vision' - 652.
Who wrote these famous lines and in what poem can they be found? "Beauty is truth, truth beauty, That is all ye know on earth, And all ye need to know.
- AKeats—Ode to a Nightingale
- BKeats—Ode on a Grecian Urn
- CShelly—Ozymandias
- DShelly—To a Skylark
Answer: Keats—Ode on a Grecian Urn - 653.
Which best describes the plot of the novel The Grapes of Wrath?
- AA poor family lose their home and farm and travel West looking for work.
- BA middle-class family lose their home and must move to the Southwest to get work and stability.
- CA poor familys city home is foreclosed and they must travel to the mid-west to get work.
- DA poor family move from their Texas ranch to get work in the agricultural areas of California.
Answer: A poor family lose their home and farm and travel West looking for work. - 654.
Death be not proud, though some have called thee mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not so is a portion of a work by this poet who lived from 1572-1631.
- ALord Byron
- BWilliam Blake
- CJohn Donne
- DJohn Milton
Answer: John Donne - 655.
Stephanie Plum has different cars throughout the various novels. However, the one that used to belong to her Uncle Sandor was affectionately called by this name.
- ABig Bertha
- BBig Betsy
- CBig Blue
- DBig Ben
Answer: Big Blue - 656.
Based on a 1983 book by Dick King-Smith, this 1995 Australian film directed by Chris Noonan was nominated for seven Academy Awards.
- ASophie
- BBabe
- CShine
- DCrocodile Dundee
Answer: Babe - 657.
What word does Holden Caulfield use to refer to everyone and everything he rejects?
- Acrap
- Bcrass
- Cphony
- Djunk
Answer: phony - 658.
Who did Ralph Nader criticize in his book Unsafe at Any Speed, published in 1965?
- AInternet
- BAuto Industry
- CVideo Games
- DOlympic Swimmers
Answer: Auto Industry - 659.
How does young Juliet Capulet die in Shakespeares tragedy Romeo and Juliet?
- AShe is poisoned by Rosaline.
- BShe stabs herself with a dagger.
- CShe swallows poison.
- DShe drowns herself.
Answer: She stabs herself with a dagger. - 660.
In Calla Bryn Sturgis, in the book Wolves of the Calla, the ka-tet meet a priest who, together with most of the townsfolk, asks them to protect them against the Wolves. What is the priests name?
- AFather Callahan
- BFather Brautigan
- CFather ONeill
- DFather Ted
Answer: Father Callahan - 661.
In Michael Crichton's novel "Jurassic Park", John Hammond meets his demise at the claws of which dinosaur?
- AVelociraptor
- BTyrannosaurus Rex
- CDilophosaurus
- DProcompsognathus
Answer: Procompsognathus - 662.
What was the first novel Dick Francis wrote?
- ANerve
- BSecond Wind
- CBolt
- DDead Cert
Answer: Dead Cert - 663.
In Shakespeares history play Richard III, this lady asked Richard, Did you not kill my husband? and got the following reply: Your beauty which did haunt me in my sleep could make me undertake the death of all the world.
- AQueen Elizabeth
- BThe Duchess of York
- CLady Anne
- DMargaret of Anjou
Answer: Lady Anne - 664.
Which novel by Charles Dickens is generally regarded as the first Victorian novel?
- AThe Pickwick Papers
- BDombey and Son
- CDavid Copperfield
- DBarnaby Rudge
Answer: The Pickwick Papers - 665.
In which Stephen King story do we meet a banker from Maine named Andy Dufresne?
- ACujo
- BShawshank Redemption
- CNeedful Things
- DChildren of the Corn
Answer: Shawshank Redemption - 666.
T. S. Eliot attended this prestigious Ivy League college, editing its literary magazine with Pulitzer- winning poet Conrad Aiken.
- ADuke
- BHarvard
- CDartmouth
- DYale
Answer: Harvard - 667.
Which author and poet famously wrote the line, "The female of the species is more deadly than the male"?
- ARudyard Kipling
- BWilliam Shakespeare
- CWilliam Wordsworth
- DEdgar Allan Poe
Answer: Rudyard Kipling - 668.
George Milton and Lennie Small were characters in which book by John Steinbeck?
- AThe Wayward Bus
- BThe Pearl
- COf Mice and Men
- DCannery Row
Answer: Of Mice and Men - 669.
Author Gabriel García Márquez stresses in this 1985 novel that love-sickness is a literal disease causing pain and other physical symptoms.
- AWalking with Liberty
- BOf Love and Other Demons
- CLove in the Time of Cholera
- DOne Hundred Years of Solitude
Answer: Love in the Time of Cholera - 670.
The biography of Nobel prize winning economist and mathematician John Nash, written by Sylvia Nasar, inspired this 2001 movie directed by Ron Howard, which was nominated for 8 Academy awards and won four of them.
- ACinderella Man
- BHigher Learning
- CThe Missing
- DBeautiful Mind
Answer: Beautiful Mind - 671.
Which of these is not one of the many pseudonyms used by American writer Dean Koontz?
- ABrian Coffey
- BOwen West
- CChris McCarthy
- DDeanna Dwyer
Answer: Chris McCarthy - 672.
Which author was not a reperesentative figure of the Harlem Renaissance, an African American cultural movement of the 1920s and early 1930s?
- AZoraNeale Hurston
- BCarl Sandburg
- CLangston Hughes
- DCountee Cullen
Answer: Carl Sandburg - 673.
In the year 1818, novelist Mary Shelly is credited with writing a fiction novel and creating this infamous character.
- AThe Thing
- BDracula
- CFrankenstein's monster
- DThe Invisible Man
Answer: Frankenstein's monster - 674.
In the Harry Potter universe, what is Cornelius Fudge's middle name?
- AJames
- BOswald
- CHarold
- DChristopher
Answer: Oswald - 675.
What is the name of Colin Creevey's brother, who appears in the book Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix?
- ADarian Creevey
- BCarson Creevey
- CJames Creevey
- DDennis Creevey
Answer: Dennis Creevey - 676.
In the book All Creatures Great and Small, which of Siegfrieds possessions does Tristan keep destroying?
- AVehicles
- BBuildings
- CTools
- DPig pens
Answer: Vehicles - 677.
Which novel by Ernest Hemingway was published in Great Britain under the title Fiesta?
- AFor Whom the Bell Tolls
- BA Farewell to Arms
- CThe Sun Also Rises
- DDeath in the Afternoon
Answer: The Sun Also Rises - 678.
The adjective Falstaffian, meaning jovial and with zest for life, is derived from the name of the fat knight Sir John Falstaff, who is featured in this Shakespearean comedy.
- AThe Merry Wives of Windsor
- BThe Merchant of Venice
- CThe Comedy of Errors
- DThe Taming of the Shrew
Answer: The Merry Wives of Windsor - 679.
Who wrote "The Scarlet Letter", published in 1850?
- AJames Fenimore Cooper
- BWashington Irving
- CCatherine Maria Sedgwick
- DNathaniel Hawthorne
Answer: Nathaniel Hawthorne - 680.
Who was the cigar-chomping fictional police inspector who had a love-hate relationship with Nero Wolfe?
- ANoonan
- BCramer
- CStebbins
- DRowcliff
Answer: Cramer - 681.
Who wrote the poem Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came that inspired Stephen King to write the first novel in The Drak Tower series?
- ARobert Browning
- BBram Stoker
- CWilliam Shakespeare
- DWB Yeats
Answer: Robert Browning - 682.
Which Bennet sister loves to exhibit her talent at parties according to the novel Pride and Prejudice?
- ALydia
- BJane
- CMary
- DKatherine
Answer: Mary - 683.
In Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, what was the name of the turtle Peter got at Jimmy Fargos birthday party?
- ADribble
- BBuster
- CPickle
- Dspeedy
Answer: Dribble - 684.
Name the Scottish King whom Macbeth murdered, led by his thirst for power and desire to obtain the throne.
- AKing Kenneth
- BKing Henry
- CKing Duncan
- DKing Malcolm II
Answer: King Duncan - 685.
What novel on Time magazines Best Novels list follows Holden Caulfield, a character that has come to be associated with teenage angst and rebellion?
- AThe Blind Assassin
- BA Clockwork Orange
- CThe Moviegoer
- DThe Catcher in the Rye
Answer: The Catcher in the Rye - 686.
What poet wrote Farewell False Love and The Nymphs Reply to the Sheppard?
- ASir Walter Raleigh
- BChristopher Marlowe
- CEdward Spenser
- DJohn Milton
Answer: Sir Walter Raleigh - 687.
"Green Eggs And Ham" is a book by which author?
- ABeatrix Potter
- BDr. Seuss
- CRoald Dahl
- DA.A. Milne
Answer: Dr. Seuss - 688.
In which play by William Shakespeare is the character King Claudius introduced?
- AKing Lear
- BThe Tempest
- CHenry VIII
- DHamlet
Answer: Hamlet - 689.
Known as the Wildman of the Woods, this tragic hero, described in The Silmarillion, was cursed by Morgoth because his father refused to reveal the location of the secret Elvin kingdom of Gondolin.
- ATuor
- BTurgon
- CTurok
- DTurin
Answer: Turin - 690.
Which member of the ka-tet is mortally wounded in The Dark Tower in the battle to free the psychics of Fedic?
- ASusannah
- BOy
- CJake
- DEddie
Answer: Eddie - 691.
On Friday 13th in 2006, American author Lemony Snicket released his last book of A Series of Unfortunate Events, featuring the Baudelaire children. How many books does the series contain?
- A13
- B14
- C12
- D11
Answer: 13 - 692.
This 1857 collection of poems by Charles Baudelaire caused him to be convicted in France of offending the morals of the time, resulting in fines and the banning of 6 of the poems.
- AThe Flowers of Evil
- BConfessions of an English Opium-Eater
- CArtificial Paradises
- DTo the Reader
Answer: The Flowers of Evil - 693.
In the original movie The Grapes of Wrath, the part of Jim Casey, the ex-minister is played by an actor with this last name.
- AAlda
- BDouglas
- CFonda
- DCarradine
Answer: Carradine - 694.
This character, who commits a number of villainous acts throughout the course of the play King Lear, is the illegitimate son of the Earl of Gloucester.
- AAntonio
- BEdgar
- CPhilip
- DEdmund
Answer: Edmund - 695.
Who are Lyra and Wills new guardians in The Amber Spyglass?
- AChevalier Tialys and Lady Salmakia
- BIorek Byrnisen and Lee Scoresby
- CSerafina Pekkala and Ruta Skadi
- DDr. Malone and Father Gomez
Answer: Chevalier Tialys and Lady Salmakia - 696.
Jud Crandall and Louis Creed are characters in which Stephen King story?
- ANight Shift
- BPet Sematary
- CChristine
- DThe Lawnmower Man
Answer: Pet Sematary - 697.
What does the name Hudson have to do with the novel The Grapes of Wrath?
- AIt is the name of the Texas ranch where the family gets part-time labor.
- BIt is the brand of car the family uses for transportation.
- CIt is the name of the cruel Illinois governor whose laws force the Darwells out of Chicago.
- DIt is the name of the family the Adams live with in Texas.
Answer: It is the brand of car the family uses for transportation. - 698.
The Devil's Dictionary
- AAmbrose Bierce
- BBeelzebub
- CTruman Capote
- DStephen King
Answer: Ambrose Bierce - 699.
In the Dark Tower series, the woman known as Susannah has a dissociative identity disorder. How many personalities does she have?
- A8
- B4
- C10
- D6
Answer: 4 - 700.
Which one of these poems from Walt Whitmans masterpiece collection Leaves of Grass was dedicated to U.S. President Abraham Lincoln?
- AI Sing the Body Electric
- BO Captain! My Captain!
- CSong of Myself
- DOut of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking
Answer: O Captain! My Captain!
How to use these trivia questions
- Warm-up. Open a lesson or meeting with 3–5 questions — enough to wake the room, short enough to keep the agenda.
- Review game. Pick 10 questions on the topic you just taught and play them in teams; discuss every wrong answer.
- Quiz night. Mix two or three topics, read each question twice, and give 20 seconds before revealing the answer.
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