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Quiz about Heartbreak Hotel
Quiz about Heartbreak Hotel

Heartbreak Hotel Trivia Quiz


Hello, and welcome to the Heartbreak Hotel! Join me as I walk you through our ten floors of heartbreak, sadness, unhappiness and love, and be warned, our guests may break your heart... Anyway, enjoy your stay!

A multiple-choice quiz by Lpez. Estimated time: 7 mins.
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Author
Lpez
Time
7 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
368,470
Updated
Aug 19 23
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Easy
Avg Score
9 / 10
Plays
1628
Awards
Top 20% Quiz
Last 3 plays: Guest 107 (6/10), Guest 162 (10/10), Guest 176 (9/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. Come on, hurry! Don't worry about your luggage; we'll take care of it. In the meantime, please hop on the elevator, it's going up. Ah, we have stopped at the first floor. The hallway feels dark and is surrounded by sadness, perhaps because of the circumstances under which the death of our guest happened.

Oh, how rude of me, I haven't even introduced our first guest! She was an American poet, who suffered from depression. She won a Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1982, but sadly, she couldn't receive it, as she had already passed away. She was a part of the confessional poetry movement.

An inscription on her door reads: "Perhaps some day I'll crawl back home, beaten, defeated. But not as long as I can make stories out of my heartbreak, beauty out of sorrow." You immediately recognize where that quote came from, and, disturbing our other guests, you carelessly yell at me: "I definitely know where these words were first written: "The Unabridged Journals of ______
_______" Which person did you just name?
Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. The elevator is here, which means it's time for us to ascend to the second floor. Our journey is fast, but the doors open slowly. I'm sure the intrigue is killing you! As we walk through the hallway, you can sense that our guest did not die peacefully.

In fact, he had a very tough life due to several laws and thoughts of his time. This man suffered discrimination and was even imprisoned because of his sexual orientation (he was a homosexual). This playwright and poet wrote great works of literature, such as "The Importance of Being Earnest" and his novel "The Picture of Dorian Gray".

During his time at prison, he wrote a rather long letter titled "De Profundis", in which he claimed "the heart was made to be broken". I'm sure you know which Irish author this is, don't you? Can you name him?
Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Now that you know "the heart was made to be broken", it's time to visit our next guest, who is one of the most important writers in Southern literature in history.

Our third floor guest was rather unknown before receiving the 1949 Nobel Prize in Literature. He grew up in Mississippi, and was part of both the Canadian and British air forces during World War I, although not as a fighter. Some of his most known works include "A Fable" and "The Sound and the Fury".

He once wrote, in his book "Soldiers' Pay": "The saddest thing about love, Joe, is that not only the love cannot last forever, but even the heartbreak is soon forgotten". Which legendary writer is described here?
Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. We have now reached the fourth floor of our hotel, and this time we're visiting an author with a wide cultural background.

As it turns out, this man was born in Detroit, to a father of Greek descent, and a mother with English and Irish roots. His novel "Middlesex" won him the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and he was named a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2013. He also wrote the novel "The Virgin Suicides", which was turned into a movie starring James Woods and Kathleen Turner in 1999.

In 2011, he wrote his third novel, "The Marriage Plot", where he said "Heartbreak is funny to everyone but the heartbroken". You suddenly feel a tear coming out of your eye, and realize how true this is. Which author is he?
Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Our floor Five guest has been around since 1939, and specializes in historical and speculative fiction.

This Canadian lady has written more than ten novels, as well as many essays and poems. She has been the recipient of prestigious awards, such as the 2008 Prince of Asturias. Some of her novels are "The Edible Woman", "Oryx and Crake", and "Alias Grace", all of which have won several awards.

Her 1993 novel "The Robber Bride" contained the following words: "You can't keep a cool head when you're drowning in love. You just thrash around a lot and scream, and wear yourself out." Which prolific author is she?
Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. This guest was one of the highest paid authors during the decade of the 30s, even though The Great Depression had just happened!

Although he had a medical background and a chance to be a great doctor, he decided to dedicate his time to full-time writing. He worked in World War I as both a Red Cross employee and a British Intelligence officer, for which he was sent to Russia. Even though he was born in France, he was technically born in Britain, as his mom gave birth to him in the British Embassy. Both his parents died when he was still a very young age. Some of his most notable works include "Of Human Bondage" and "Cakes and Ale".

According to his 1938 novel "The Summing Up", "The greatest tragedy of life is not that men perish, but that they cease to love". Which great author is he?
Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Our seventh floor is full of Latin American culture, in order to make our guest feel as comfortable as possible.

Regarded as one of the greatest Latin American authors, he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1982, as well as the 1972 Neustadt International Prize for Literature. This author of "One Hundred Years of Solitude" and "Love in the Time of Cholera" started his career as a journalist, but later decided to pursue a writing career. He sadly passed away in Mexico City on April 2014.

In one of his many short stories, he mentioned "Perhaps this is what the stories meant when they called somebody heartsick. Your heart and your stomach and your whole insides felt empty and hollow and aching". Which literary great is staying on our seventh floor?
Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. We have reached the eight floor, and we're almost finished with our tour! Don't be sad though, as there's still plenty to discover.

Born in San Francisco, California, this author graduated from Swarthmore College. He was imprisoned during the Korean War as he was against said war; he was however released months later. Some of his famous works include "Whites" and "Mortals".

His most famous and successful novel was "Mating", a winner of the 1991 National Book Award for Fiction. In it, one of his characters stated "I feel like someone after a deluge being asked to describe the way it was before the flood while I'm still plucking seaweed out of my hair". Who wrote "Mating"?
Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. One of the most influential English writers is staying at our ninth floor.

We're talking about an English essayist and lexicographer, who only went to college for a year. He became a teacher and he started writing biographies and articles, as well as poems. Some of his major works are "The Rambler", "Messiah" and "London".

James Boswell once wrote in a biography dedicated to this author some words credited to him: "While grief is fresh, every attempt to divert only irritates. You must wait till it be digested, and then amusement will dissipate the remains of it". Which great Englishman, often referred to as a doctor, said this?
Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. The time has come for our final guest, perhaps the spookiest one of them all.

This horror writer is known for his very frightening writing style, and even more frightening books. His wide list of works includes "Carrie", "The Shining", and "The Dark Tower". He hails from Maine, and many of his stories are set there. He has won multiple awards, such as the Bram Stoker Awards and the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.

In 1999, he published "Hearts in Atlantis", where he said "Hearts can break. Yes, hearts can break. Sometimes I think it would be better if we died when they did, but we don't". Most of us have felt that way, haven't we? Which author is he?
Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Come on, hurry! Don't worry about your luggage; we'll take care of it. In the meantime, please hop on the elevator, it's going up. Ah, we have stopped at the first floor. The hallway feels dark and is surrounded by sadness, perhaps because of the circumstances under which the death of our guest happened. Oh, how rude of me, I haven't even introduced our first guest! She was an American poet, who suffered from depression. She won a Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1982, but sadly, she couldn't receive it, as she had already passed away. She was a part of the confessional poetry movement. An inscription on her door reads: "Perhaps some day I'll crawl back home, beaten, defeated. But not as long as I can make stories out of my heartbreak, beauty out of sorrow." You immediately recognize where that quote came from, and, disturbing our other guests, you carelessly yell at me: "I definitely know where these words were first written: "The Unabridged Journals of ______ _______" Which person did you just name?

Answer: Sylvia Plath

Sylvia Plath wrote many short stories and poems during her short life. She was born in Massachusetts, from a German father and an American-Austrian mother. In 1950, she went to Smith College, from which she graduated five years later. She tried slashing her legs after she was disappointed because of not meeting poet Dylan Thomas. Then she took her mother's pills in another attempt to commit suicide, but was unsuccessful. After being given electric and insulin shock treatment, she partially overcame her depression and returned to study. The events during this period of her life inspired the novel "The Bell Jar".

Plath married fellow poet Ted Hughes on June 16, 1956, four months after they first met at a party in Cambridge. Between 1956 and the first years of 1960, Sylvia wrote hundreds of poems, as well as several novels and short stories. Her style rarely changed; she wrote confessional, deep and private stuff. In 1961, Hughes was discovered having an affair with Assia Wevill, which sparked another suicide attempt from Plath, this time in a car accident. However, she was still alive, and the couple separated. Plath took prescribed antidepressants on a regular basis. On February 11, 1963, Plath was found dead at her kitchen of carbon monoxide poisoning, with her head inside the oven. This was ruled a suicide, given her several other attempts before. Her many attempts to kill herself led to psychologist James Kaufman coining the term "Sylvia Plath Effect", which refers to poets more susceptible than others to mental illness.

"The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath" begin when she's 18, and go all the way until her death. Plath really took "beauty out of sorrow", and impregnated her pain on paper for us to read.
2. The elevator is here, which means it's time for us to ascend to the second floor. Our journey is fast, but the doors open slowly. I'm sure the intrigue is killing you! As we walk through the hallway, you can sense that our guest did not die peacefully. In fact, he had a very tough life due to several laws and thoughts of his time. This man suffered discrimination and was even imprisoned because of his sexual orientation (he was a homosexual). This playwright and poet wrote great works of literature, such as "The Importance of Being Earnest" and his novel "The Picture of Dorian Gray". During his time at prison, he wrote a rather long letter titled "De Profundis", in which he claimed "the heart was made to be broken". I'm sure you know which Irish author this is, don't you? Can you name him?

Answer: Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde was one of the most noted Irish authors of all time. He was born in Dublin, Ireland, where he also studied at Trinity College. He was a brilliant student; however, he was also rebellious. What is more, his behavior was against the time's standards, as he began wearing his hair long, and decorating his room with flowers and peacock feathers, a rather unusual thing to do according to the perception of what a man was in that time. He later moved to London, where he first became a noted playwright. He became famous not only because of his work, but because of his way of dressing. Even though he married Constance Lloyd in 1884, with which he had two sons, he might have been bisexual, or homosexual.

As a matter of fact, his relationship with Alfred Douglas led him to being charged and imprisoned for his homosexuality (a crime in England at that time), and was sentenced for two years. When released, he left for Paris, where he died in 1900.

During his time at prison, he wrote a letter to Mr. Douglas called "De Profundis", a reference to Psalm 130 (it is Latin for "from the depths"). In it, he discussed the events that led to him being jailed, as well as making profound reflections on love.
3. Now that you know "the heart was made to be broken", it's time to visit our next guest, who is one of the most important writers in Southern literature in history. Our third floor guest was rather unknown before receiving the 1949 Nobel Prize in Literature. He grew up in Mississippi, and was part of both the Canadian and British air forces during World War I, although not as a fighter. Some of his most known works include "A Fable" and "The Sound and the Fury". He once wrote, in his book "Soldiers' Pay": "The saddest thing about love, Joe, is that not only the love cannot last forever, but even the heartbreak is soon forgotten". Which legendary writer is described here?

Answer: William Faulkner

William Faulkner wrote poems since he was a student. After being unable to join the United States Army because of his short height, he was enlisted as a reservist for the British Armed Forces, in Canada. Although he claimed that he fought during World War I, there are no records to prove so. In 1927, "Flags in the Dust" was written, being his first novel to be set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, a place that would serve as the main setting for many of his novels and short stories.

Most of his novels intend to show the decay of the Southern part of the United States, and social issues. For example, "Absalom, Absalom!" portrays the racial prejudice that existed in that part of America. Faulkner won two Pulitzer Prizes, one for "The Fable", in 1955, and the other for "The Reivers", in 1963.

The book "Soldiers' Pay" followed the story of a wounded aviator who returned home, which might have been based in his personal experiences as an aviator in the First World War.
4. We have now reached the fourth floor of our hotel, and this time we're visiting an author with a wide cultural background. As it turns out, this man was born in Detroit, to a father of Greek descent, and a mother with English and Irish roots. His novel "Middlesex" won him the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and he was named a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2013. He also wrote the novel "The Virgin Suicides", which was turned into a movie starring James Woods and Kathleen Turner in 1999. In 2011, he wrote his third novel, "The Marriage Plot", where he said "Heartbreak is funny to everyone but the heartbroken". You suddenly feel a tear coming out of your eye, and realize how true this is. Which author is he?

Answer: Jeffrey Eugenides

Jeffrey Eugenides took his undergraduate degree at Brown University, but also studied at Stanford University. Eugenides is a modernist, and has cited other modernist writers, such as James Joyce and Marcel Proust, as inspirations. His stories are frequently influenced by his hometown of Detroit, Michigan. Eugenides has also lived in Germany as well as in Princeton, New Jersey, where he teaches creative writing.

His novel "The Virgin Suicides" was adapted into a movie directed by Sophia Coppola in 1999, which followed the story of five sisters living in a wealthy suburb of Detroit during the decade of the 70s. A short story of his, "Baster", inspired the 2010 film "The Switch", starring Jennifer Aniston and Jason Bateman.

"The Marriage Plot", a novel featuring a love triangle, was his first work in nine years, and won the 2011 Salon Book Award for Fiction, as well as being mentioned on the Library Journal Best Books of the Year list, also in 2011.
5. Our floor Five guest has been around since 1939, and specializes in historical and speculative fiction. This Canadian lady has written more than ten novels, as well as many essays and poems. She has been the recipient of prestigious awards, such as the 2008 Prince of Asturias. Some of her novels are "The Edible Woman", "Oryx and Crake", and "Alias Grace", all of which have won several awards. Her 1993 novel "The Robber Bride" contained the following words: "You can't keep a cool head when you're drowning in love. You just thrash around a lot and scream, and wear yourself out." Which prolific author is she?

Answer: Margaret Atwood

Margaret Atwood has lived in Canada throughout most of her life, and has been writing professionally since 1955. She graduated from Victoria College, and obtained a master's degree at Harvard's Radcliffe. She then served as English Professor in several schools and colleges. She was named Humanist of the Year in 1987 by the American Humanist Association. Although she has published novels with apparently feminist content, she has denied the fact that she herself is a feminist.

Her work has been nominated for the Booker Prize in various occasions, some of which she has won. "The Blind Assassin" won the 2000 Booker Prize, while "The Handmaid's Tale", "Cat's Eye", "Alias Grace", and "Oryx and Crake" were finalists for editions of the Booker Prize.

"The Robber Bride" was published in September 1993, and was adapted into a TV film in 2007 by CBC, starring Mary-Louise Parker and Wendy Crewson.
6. This guest was one of the highest paid authors during the decade of the 30s, even though The Great Depression had just happened! Although he had a medical background and a chance to be a great doctor, he decided to dedicate his time to full-time writing. He worked in World War I as both a Red Cross employee and a British Intelligence officer, for which he was sent to Russia. Even though he was born in France, he was technically born in Britain, as his mom gave birth to him in the British Embassy. Both his parents died when he was still a very young age. Some of his most notable works include "Of Human Bondage" and "Cakes and Ale". According to his 1938 novel "The Summing Up", "The greatest tragedy of life is not that men perish, but that they cease to love". Which great author is he?

Answer: W. Somerset Maugham

Maugham, one of the most successful British writers to be a bisexual, had a rather rough childhood, as after his parents died, he had to live with his uncle, who wasn't exactly the love-giving kind. Even though he studied medicine, he started writing and discovered it was his true passion. He had a long relationship with Frederick Gerald Haxton, but he had a daughter with Syrie Wellcome, who divorced him years later as it was uncomfortable to travel along with Haxton. Unlike Oscar Wilde, consequences for their homosexuality were not imposed in Britain.

Many of his novels have been adapted into films, such as "The Painted Veil" (starring Naomi Watts) and "Up at the Villa" (starring Sean Penn). Some others are "The Razor's Edge", "Christmas Holiday" and "The Seventh Sin". Since 1947, the Somerset Maugham award is given to the best British fiction author under the age of 35.

"The Summing Up" is a collection of memories of Maugham's life, and was written when he was 64 years old.
7. Our seventh floor is full of Latin American culture, in order to make our guest feel as comfortable as possible. Regarded as one of the greatest Latin American authors, he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1982, as well as the 1972 Neustadt International Prize for Literature. This author of "One Hundred Years of Solitude" and "Love in the Time of Cholera" started his career as a journalist, but later decided to pursue a writing career. He sadly passed away in Mexico City on April 2014. In one of his many short stories, he mentioned "Perhaps this is what the stories meant when they called somebody heartsick. Your heart and your stomach and your whole insides felt empty and hollow and aching". Which literary great is staying on our seventh floor?

Answer: Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Gabriel Garcia Marquez, born in Colombia but frequently regarded as a Mexican because of the long time he spent in this country, first started writing as a journalist in his birth nation. One of his most famous works is "The Story of a Shipwrecked Sailor", is a non-fiction work based on seaman Luis Alejandro Velasco, who survived a marine catastrophe. After that, he rose to fame with "One Hundred Years of Solitude", and immigrated to Europe. Garcia Marquez helped in negotiations between the Colombian government and guerrillas.

Some of his famous novels include "In Evil Hour" (his first), "The Autumn of the Patriarch", and "The General in his Labyrinth". He also wrote several novellas and short stories throughout his lifetime.

Garcia Marquez suffered from Alzheimer's disease. He died on April 17, 2014 in Mexico City, as a result of pneumonia. Both the Colombian and Mexican Presidents attended his funeral.
8. We have reached the eight floor, and we're almost finished with our tour! Don't be sad though, as there's still plenty to discover. Born in San Francisco, California, this author graduated from Swarthmore College. He was imprisoned during the Korean War as he was against said war; he was however released months later. Some of his famous works include "Whites" and "Mortals". His most famous and successful novel was "Mating", a winner of the 1991 National Book Award for Fiction. In it, one of his characters stated "I feel like someone after a deluge being asked to describe the way it was before the flood while I'm still plucking seaweed out of my hair". Who wrote "Mating"?

Answer: Norman Rush

Norman Rush's novels are usually set in the African country of Botswana. He was a teacher, and wrote in his free time. "The New Yorker" published a story he wrote about his experiences with teaching in 1978. He then worked for the Peace Corps, with his wife, in Botswana.

His novel "White" was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. He published his third novel, titled "Subtle Bodies", in 2013.

"Mating" was also recognized with the 1992 Irish Times/Aer Lingus International Fiction Prize.
9. One of the most influential English writers is staying at our ninth floor. We're talking about an English essayist and lexicographer, who only went to college for a year. He became a teacher and he started writing biographies and articles, as well as poems. Some of his major works are "The Rambler", "Messiah" and "London". James Boswell once wrote in a biography dedicated to this author some words credited to him: "While grief is fresh, every attempt to divert only irritates. You must wait till it be digested, and then amusement will dissipate the remains of it". Which great Englishman, often referred to as a doctor, said this?

Answer: Samuel Johnson

Dr Johnson, as he is regarded by some, was known for works such as "A Dictionary of the English Language", "The Vanity of Human Wishes", and his biography "Life of Mr. Richard Savage". Throughout his life, he suffered from several health complications like tuberculosis and cardiac failure. He died with a lot of emotional issues, as his friends and loved ones had passed away recently.

Johnson was a literary critic, he wrote several essays, some of them with Shakespeare as a theme.

One of his close friends, James Boswell, wrote "The Life of Samuel Johnson", a biography published in 1791. Some believe it is not quite an appropriate biography as it is not totally accurate.
10. The time has come for our final guest, perhaps the spookiest one of them all. This horror writer is known for his very frightening writing style, and even more frightening books. His wide list of works includes "Carrie", "The Shining", and "The Dark Tower". He hails from Maine, and many of his stories are set there. He has won multiple awards, such as the Bram Stoker Awards and the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. In 1999, he published "Hearts in Atlantis", where he said "Hearts can break. Yes, hearts can break. Sometimes I think it would be better if we died when they did, but we don't". Most of us have felt that way, haven't we? Which author is he?

Answer: Stephen King

Stephen King has sold millions of copies of his works, mostly horror and fantasy. He has won the Bram Stoker Award (given by the Horror Writers Association) more than 14 times, as well as the British Fantasy Award. He also won the 1999 and 2003 editions of the International Horror Guild Awards.

King was abandoned by his father when he was two years old, so he grew up with his mother and his older brother, who was adopted. His inspiration for his horror stories might come from an event he witnessed at a very early age, a friend of his being killed by a train.

"Hearts in Atlantis" was adapted into a film in 2001, starring Anthony Hopkins. The book is a collection of short stories and two novellas.
Source: Author Lpez

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