Name the Ten Shakespeare Characters Quiz

Answer: Aaron

Aaron is the secret lover and advisor of Tamora, Queen of the Goths. After Tamora marries Roman Emperor Saturninus, Aaron uses her newfound power to start a brutal campaign of revenge against Titus Andronicus and his family.

He masterminds the rape and mutilation of Titus's daughter Lavinia, frames Titus's sons for murder, and tricks Titus into chopping off his own hand under the false promise of saving his children.

Aaron is eventually captured by Titus's son, Lucius who marches to Rome with a Gothic army to claim the imperial throne. He is sentenced by Lucius to a slow, brutal execution where he is buried chest-deep in the earth and left to starve to death. However, he does not show any repentance for his horrific crimes, but instead, he uses his final moments to deliver one of the most unapologetically evil monologues.

Answer: Edmund

Edmund, the illegitimate son of Earl of Gloucester (Lear loyalist) manipulates Goneril and Regan (elder daughters of King Lear) to fight against each other. Both fall madly in love with Edmund. Goneril poisons Regan out of jealousy to eliminate her as a rival for Edmund's affection, and later commits suicide after her treasonous plots with Edmund are exposed.

Cordelia who marries the French king, sends an army to rescue her father from Edmund. However, her forces are defeated by Edmund. She and her father are taken as prisoners. She meets a tragic and senseless end. Edmund secretly tries to kill her by signing a death warrant, and sends an executioner to the prison to hang her and make it look like a suicide. After Edmund is mortally wounded in a duel by his brother Edgar (legitimate son of Earl of Gloucester), he undergoes a final change of heart and tries to call back the execution order. However, his messenger arrives too late to save her.

Answer: Macduff

Macduff, Thane of Fife, is fiercely loyal to King Duncan. After he discovers King Duncan's assassinated body, he sounds the alarm to the castle. He immediately suspects Macbeth of foul play, refusing to attend Macbeth's coronation.

He flees to England to join Duncan's exiled son, Malcolm, to build an army to reclaim the Scottish throne. Macbeth takes revenge by sending assassins to kill his wife, children, and servants. In the final battle at Dunsinane Castle, he meets Macbeth in single combat. He slays Macbeth, cuts off his head, and presents it to Malcolm, hailing him as the rightful King of Scotland.

Answer: Jacques

Jaques delivers that legendary monologue in Act II, Scene 7 to Duke Senior in the Forest of Arden. The phrase means that human life is like a theatrical performance, where the world is the theatre, and all human beings are merely actors playing specific roles throughout their lives.

Answer: Caliban

Prospero describes Caliban as a "demi-devil" as his mother, the Algerian witch Sycorax, was impregnated by an evil spirit before she was exiled to an isolated island. He is frequently insulted as a "hag-seed," a "freckled whelp," and a "fish-monster" due to his strange smell and appearance.

Answer: Henry VI, Part 1

In "Henry VI, Part 1", she is referred as "Joan la Pucelle (Joan the Maid)". The play written during Elizabeth I's reign was a period of intense nationalism and constant conflicts with Catholic Europe. In the play, the portrayal of Joan in the play is highly complex, deeply polarized that is different from the revered French saint known today.

Answer: Viola

Viola is stranded in the kingdom of Illyria after her ship is destroyed during a violent storm, which also drowns Sebastian, her identical twin brother. In order to safely navigate the unfamiliar land, she disguises herself as young page boy named Cesario. Under this disguise, she is able to get into the service of Duke Orsino, the ruler of Illyria. The ruler likes the charming "young boy" and makes her his closest confidant.

Answer: John Falstaff

Falstaff serves as a corrupt, surrogate father figure to young Prince Hal (the future King Henry V). They spend their days drinking at the Boars Head Tavern in Eastcheap with a gang of thieves which include Bardolph and Pistol.

When war breaks out against the Scottish rebels, Falstaff, who is given the military commission, abuses his power by taking bribes to let wealthy, fit soldiers buy their way out of service, replacing them with poor peasants. The weak soldiers are easily defeated by the rebels. On the battlefield, he even fakes his own death to avoid being killed by the Earl of Douglas (Archibald), the Scottish rebel leader against Henry IV.

Answer: Henry V

Henry V delivers the inspirational speech before the historical Battle of Agincourt in 1415. As his exhausted troops are vastly outnumbered by the fresh French army, his speech boosts the morale of his soldiers. He tells them although they have fewer men, there is a larger share of honor for those who fight. It is from this speech that we get the famous phrase "band of brothers".

Answer: Cinna the Poet

The name Cinna actually belongs to two entirely separate characters. The first Cinna is a Roman senator who helps Cassius to recruit Brutus in the plot to assassinate Caesar. He serves as a master of logistics and a propaganda herald in the conspiracy.

The other is Cinna the Poet, an innocent civilian, artist, and friend of Brutus who has absolutely nothing to do with Roman politics or the assassination plot. The mob completely blinded by rage and bloodlust kills him, even though he frantically pleads "I am Cinna the poet, I am Cinna the poet!".