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Quiz about Whats in a Title Its a Shakespeare Quote
Quiz about Whats in a Title Its a Shakespeare Quote

What's in a Title? It's a Shakespeare Quote! Quiz


Among the Bard's innumerable contributions to Western culture (not least quiz-making), let's not forget catchy phrases used by some authors to name their literary efforts! Here are some well-known examples from the 20th century.

A multiple-choice quiz by jensj2. Estimated time: 6 mins.
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Author
jensj2
Time
6 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
256,475
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
6 / 10
Plays
5853
Awards
Editor's Choice
Last 3 plays: dee1304 (8/10), Guest 157 (1/10), winston1 (2/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. "Who cannot condemn rashness in cold blood? /To kill, I grant, is sin's extremest gust (=outburst), /but in defence, by mercy, 'tis most just" proclaims Alcibiades, a soldier, in 'Timon of Athens'. In 1959, a horrible crime of the first kind occurred in Kansas. What American writer wrote a classic account of the case, entitled 'In Cold Blood'? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. "Cry 'havoc' and let slip (=unleash) the dogs of war, /that this foul deed shall smell above the earth/ with carrion men, groaning for burial". This is Antony, vowing to avenge the death of his beloved Caesar in 'The Tragedy of Julius Caesar'. What well-known British thriller author, who achieved a huge breakthrough with his first novel in 1971 about another attempted regicide, titled his third novel 'The Dogs of War'? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. "Now is the winter of our discontent /made glorious summer by this son of York" are the famous first lines of 'Richard III', uttered by the namesake hero (well, not quite) of the play. What American Nobel Prize winner called his 1961 novel about intrigue on a more mundane level "The Winter of Our Discontent"? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. "To be or not to be, that is the question" alleges Hamlet, as you probably know (unless somebody forced you to take this quiz). If you know your jazz history, you should know which one of these musicians hilariously named his 1979 autobiography, 'To Be or not to Bop'? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. "Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible (=perceptible)/ to feeling as to sight? Or art thou but/ a dagger of the mind, a false creation" exclaims an anguished Macbeth before his horrible deed. In 1983 Joe McGinniss published 'Fatal Vision', a book about a famous murder case in 1970 that took place in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Who was the man accused of stabbing his entire family to death in what became known as 'The Green Beret killings'? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. "My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips' red" is a curious non-compliment from Shakespeare's sonnet #130. What British author, more known for a violent, bleak vision of the future, famously filmed in 1971, wrote a novel about Shakespeare's life entitled 'Nothing Like the Sun'? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. In 'Hamlet', the Prince of Denmark stages a play within the play to "catch the conscience of the king". When this usurper king, Claudius, asks about the title of the play, Hamlet comes up with a name that Agatha Christie would borrow for a theatrical piece, which holds the record for the most performances ever of a stage production. Which is it?

Answer: (Two words, first one 'The')
Question 8 of 10
8. "By the pricking of my thumbs, /something wicked this way comes", hisses one of the witches in 'Macbeth', the wicked one being Macbeth himself. In a 1962 fantasy novel it is 'Mr Dark', a carnival director. What American author, mostly known for his short stories mixing science fiction, horror and fantasy in a quite unique fashion, wrote the novel 'Something Wicked this Way Comes'? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. "The moon's an arrant thief, /and her pale fire she snatches from the sun" exclaims a bitter Timon of Athens in act IV of the play by the same name. What Russian-born author, mostly known for a classic novel, which was once considered another dirty book, wrote an amazingly intricate meta-story called 'Pale Fire'? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Life is "...a tale/ told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / signifying nothing", says a by now very depressed (and not without reason) Macbeth in the final act. What celebrated author wrote 'The Sound and the Fury' about some other people in low spirits in the Deep South? Hint





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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. "Who cannot condemn rashness in cold blood? /To kill, I grant, is sin's extremest gust (=outburst), /but in defence, by mercy, 'tis most just" proclaims Alcibiades, a soldier, in 'Timon of Athens'. In 1959, a horrible crime of the first kind occurred in Kansas. What American writer wrote a classic account of the case, entitled 'In Cold Blood'?

Answer: Truman Capote

Capote's book about a quadruple murder on a Kansas farm became a bestseller and is considered to be a milestone in true crime and non-fiction writing in general. The two killers, Hickock and Smith, were tried together and executed in 1965. The 2005 film 'Capote' deals with the creation of this work.
2. "Cry 'havoc' and let slip (=unleash) the dogs of war, /that this foul deed shall smell above the earth/ with carrion men, groaning for burial". This is Antony, vowing to avenge the death of his beloved Caesar in 'The Tragedy of Julius Caesar'. What well-known British thriller author, who achieved a huge breakthrough with his first novel in 1971 about another attempted regicide, titled his third novel 'The Dogs of War'?

Answer: Frederick Forsyth

'The Day of the Jackal', about the attempted assassination of French president de Gaulle, brought Forsyth immediate international fame. 'The Dogs of War' deals with a coup performed by foreign mercenaries in a fictive African country. In my opinion, it is much weaker than his first two novels (the second was 'The Odessa File').
3. "Now is the winter of our discontent /made glorious summer by this son of York" are the famous first lines of 'Richard III', uttered by the namesake hero (well, not quite) of the play. What American Nobel Prize winner called his 1961 novel about intrigue on a more mundane level "The Winter of Our Discontent"?

Answer: John Steinbeck

Steinbeck, who won the Nobel Prize in 1962, remains a popular writer all around the world. The Nobel award caused some controversy, however, as many critics felt that his work did not merit such a high honour. This novel is less known than his classics 'Of Mice and Men' and 'The Grapes of Wrath'.
4. "To be or not to be, that is the question" alleges Hamlet, as you probably know (unless somebody forced you to take this quiz). If you know your jazz history, you should know which one of these musicians hilariously named his 1979 autobiography, 'To Be or not to Bop'?

Answer: Dizzy Gillespie

The word 'bop' is the giveaway, since Gillespie, together with Charlie Parker, was the founding father of bebop. It does not belong to the easy listening genre, but Dizzy's genial and extroverted character helped to bring it worldwide recognition through the decades. He passed away in 1993.
5. "Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible (=perceptible)/ to feeling as to sight? Or art thou but/ a dagger of the mind, a false creation" exclaims an anguished Macbeth before his horrible deed. In 1983 Joe McGinniss published 'Fatal Vision', a book about a famous murder case in 1970 that took place in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Who was the man accused of stabbing his entire family to death in what became known as 'The Green Beret killings'?

Answer: Jeffrey MacDonald

MacDonald was first acquitted at an army hearing, but was eventually sentenced to life in prison in 1979. In a later, unprecedented trial, he would sue McGinniss for having feigned support while researching the story, all the while being convinced of Macdonald's guilt (the case was settled out of court). He maintains his innocence, and another book, 'Fatal Justice' disputes the verdict.
6. "My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips' red" is a curious non-compliment from Shakespeare's sonnet #130. What British author, more known for a violent, bleak vision of the future, famously filmed in 1971, wrote a novel about Shakespeare's life entitled 'Nothing Like the Sun'?

Answer: Anthony Burgess

This novel is a delight to read. Burgess fills out the (considerable) blanks in Will's life in a language that virtually matches that of his subject. We are treated to juicy details of the first encounter with Anne Hathaway and the relationship with the Earl of Southampton, and finally get to know who 'the dark lady' of the sonnets really was.
7. In 'Hamlet', the Prince of Denmark stages a play within the play to "catch the conscience of the king". When this usurper king, Claudius, asks about the title of the play, Hamlet comes up with a name that Agatha Christie would borrow for a theatrical piece, which holds the record for the most performances ever of a stage production. Which is it?

Answer: The Mousetrap

This play has been running in London since 1952. According to Christie's wishes, no film version has ever seen the light. I shall not reveal the name of the murderer, though you can always try Wikipedia...
8. "By the pricking of my thumbs, /something wicked this way comes", hisses one of the witches in 'Macbeth', the wicked one being Macbeth himself. In a 1962 fantasy novel it is 'Mr Dark', a carnival director. What American author, mostly known for his short stories mixing science fiction, horror and fantasy in a quite unique fashion, wrote the novel 'Something Wicked this Way Comes'?

Answer: Ray Bradbury

Ray Bradbury (who, by the way, is of Swedish ancestry) is perhaps most famous for 'Fahrenheit 451', a title which was paraphrased by Michael Moore in his documentary film 'Fahrenheit 9/11'. This was a title loan Bradbury did not much like!
9. "The moon's an arrant thief, /and her pale fire she snatches from the sun" exclaims a bitter Timon of Athens in act IV of the play by the same name. What Russian-born author, mostly known for a classic novel, which was once considered another dirty book, wrote an amazingly intricate meta-story called 'Pale Fire'?

Answer: Vladimir Nabokov

Nabokov moved to America in 1940 and wrote his later work in English, making him one of the rare cases of a major author writing in a non-native language. (The "dirty book" is, of course, 'Lolita'.) Other names that come to mind are Joseph Conrad and Milan Kundera. We mere mortals, though, are still struggling with quizzes...
10. Life is "...a tale/ told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / signifying nothing", says a by now very depressed (and not without reason) Macbeth in the final act. What celebrated author wrote 'The Sound and the Fury' about some other people in low spirits in the Deep South?

Answer: William Faulkner

Faulkner won the Nobel Prize in 1949 and is considered one of the major names of the modern novel. He created a fictional universe for most of his novels, Yoknapatawpha County, set in his native Mississippi. He died in 1962, but his reputation has only been growing ever since.
Source: Author jensj2

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