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Quiz about Shakespeare By Body Count
Quiz about Shakespeare By Body Count

Shakespeare By Body Count Trivia Quiz


Who says Shakespeare's plays are boring? This quiz will count down the ten bloodiest plays in the Bard's canon to determine which one has the most deaths. Spoilers abound in this quiz.

A multiple-choice quiz by adams627. Estimated time: 9 mins.
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Author
adams627
Time
9 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
327,408
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
8 / 10
Plays
1183
Awards
Top 5% quiz!
Last 3 plays: Guest 151 (10/10), Guest 71 (10/10), Guest 5 (10/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. The least bloody play in this countdown, number 10, includes only one major death, that of the title character.

1. The title character, whose generosity and compassion is replaced by cruelty and disillusionment after the betrayal of his friends, commits suicide after finding gold in a deserted cave and giving it to Alcibiades.

In which play, often considered experimental or unfinished, does this tragic death occur?
Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Shakespeare's ninth-bloodiest play sees two deaths, equally tragic.

1. Mamillius dies of grief, after his father Leontes imprisons his mother Hermione when the father believes his wife is committing adultery.
2. In quite possibly the most excellent stage direction in theatrical history, Antigonus delivers the baby Perdita to a remote locale before being chased off stage by a bear.

Despite these deaths, everything turns out fine in which Shakespeare play?
Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. For a famous tragedy, this play sees *only* four deaths, earning it eighth in the countdown.

1. Roderigo, initially a conspirator in the plot, is stabbed to prevent him from divulging information.
2. Desdemona is smothered by a pillow by her husband in suspicion of adultery.
3. The title character commits suicide after he realizes that Iago's machinations have ruined his life.
4. Emilia is stabbed by her husband to prevent her from divulging information, too.

Iago is also sentenced away for execution at the end of which Shakespearean tragedy?

Answer: (One Word)
Question 4 of 10
4. What is it with Shakespearean title characters and suicide? The two in the title of this play, along with three others, create a respectable body count earning seventh in the countdown.

1. Fulvia, one title character's spouse, rebelled and died before the start of the play.
2. Enobarbus changes sides from the title characters in the midst of a war, then dies of a broken heart out of guilt.
3. Eros kills himself because he can't accede to a demand to kill the first title character.
4. The first title character commits suicide by stabbing.
5. The second title character dies from the bite of an asp.

In which not-very-famous Shakespeare play about a famous legend do these deaths occur?
Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Five people die in another of the Bard's masterpieces, but this play earns sixth in the countdown because it also features a battle (Philippi).

1. The title character is assassinated by conspirators, even though his death had been foretold by a soothsayer, his wife, and a scholar.
2. The protagonist's wife Portia commits suicide by swallowing hot coals.
3. Cassius commits suicide when he thinks his friend Titinius has been killed.
4. Titinius commits suicide after he sees that Cassius has killed himself.
5. Brutus eventually realizes that everyone in his life has died, so he runs into his sword.

Such tragic events occur in which bloody Shakespearean play?

Answer: (Two Words)
Question 6 of 10
6. Coming in at fifth in a countdown is a play whose title characters' deaths are established in the prologue, but eventually come about from a cruel twist of fate. In addition to those two, four others perish in this work.

1. One person is stabbed, saying "A plague o' both your houses."
2. Then, his killer is furiously stabbed by one of the title characters.
3. When Paris gets in the way toward the end of the play, he also dies by the sword.
4. The first title character, thinking that the second title character is dead, swallows poison.
5. The second title character, realizing that the first title character really is dead, stabs herself.
6. Just to escalate the death count, one of the protagonists' mothers dies of grief in Act V.

Body counts begin to escalate with the deaths found in which famous tragedy?
Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Some people call the play found at number four in the countdown "Shakespeare's shortest and bloodiest tragedy." It's not, because body count is "just" eight. However, it gets extra credit, because there are three characters known jointly as "The Murderers."

1. King Duncan is stabbed to fulfill Part I of the witches' prophecy.
2 and 3. In paranoia, the title character stabs two guards who might know about the bloody crimes he is responsible for.
4, 5, and 6. The title character hires Murderers to kill Banquo, fulfilling Part II of the prophecy. They also kill Macduff's wife and son.
7. After hallucinating bloodstains, the title character's wife probably commits suicide.
8. Macduff, who notably was "not from woman born," kills the title character, and Malcolm takes the throne, fulfilling the rest of the prophecy.

Ambition for power ultimately kills eight in which canonical Shakespeare tragedy?

Answer: (One Word)
Question 8 of 10
8. Now, at third in the countdown, we reach a truly bloody play, where nine characters meet their untimely demises.

1. The title character's father dies (some time shortly before the action starts) when his brother puts poison in his ear while sleeping.
2. The Prime Minister is stabbed when he is spying from behind a curtain.
3. The title character's girlfriend drowns (whether or not it was suicide is unclear).
4. The title character's mother is poisoned by a cup of wine intended for her son.
5. The title character dies in a fencing match from a poisoned sword.
6. His opponent in that fencing match dies from that same sword.
7. The antagonist, the title character's uncle, dies both from the poisoned wine and the poisoned sword.
8 and 9. The Ambassador points out at the end of the play that "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead," which opened the opportunity for Tom Stoppard's famous parody play.

In which extremely famous Shakespeare play do all of these characters meet their ends?

Answer: (One Word)
Question 9 of 10
9. Ten deaths is simply absurd for any play, but this Shakespearean tragedy gives new meaning to a body count.

1. Cornwall is attacked by a servant after he gouges out Gloucester's eyes.
2. That servant is then killed by Regan.
3. Oswald is killed by Edgar.
4. Regan is poisoned by Goneril.
5. Edmund dies in a duel with his half-brother.
6. Gloucester dies of surprise when he sees Edgar alive.
7. Goneril commits suicide after killing her sister.
8. Cordelia is hanged by an unnamed character.
9. The title character kills the murderer of his daughter.
10. The title character dies of grief after he realizes that all three of his daughters perished.

Ten deaths, plus one character's eyes are gouged out- Shakespeare certainly didn't have difficulty showing gore in which of his tragedies?
Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Shakespeare's number one bloodiest play is hardly performed anymore precisely because it is so bloody. Fourteen characters die within five acts, one of them has her tongue cut out as well, and two sons are baked into pies and eaten.

1. Alarbus is sacrificed after his mother loses in battle.
2. In the midst of a battle, Mutius is killed by his father accidentally.
3. Bassanius is assassinated by Chiron and Demetrius at the instructions of Aaron the Moor.
4 and 5. Martius and Quintus are framed for the murder of Bassanius, and their heads are shown on stage after they have been decapitated.
6. A clown is executed, just because.
7. Aaron the Moor kills a nurse when she discovers that Tamora's newborn is his child.
8 and 9. Chiron and Demetrius have their throats cut by the title character and are baked into a pie.
10. Chiron and Demetrius cut out Lavinia's tongue and hands to stop her from revealing what they did to her. When the title character realizes what happened to his daughter, he decides to kill Lavinia.
11. Tamora eats the pie that her sons had been baked in, then is murdered by the title character.
12. Saturninus kills the title character before he can murder anyone else.
13. Lucius kills Saturninus in revenge for the death of his father.
14. Aaron is buried alive as punishment for his cruel deeds.

Essentially, two characters are left alive at the end of which disarmingly-bloody Shakespearean play?
Hint





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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. The least bloody play in this countdown, number 10, includes only one major death, that of the title character. 1. The title character, whose generosity and compassion is replaced by cruelty and disillusionment after the betrayal of his friends, commits suicide after finding gold in a deserted cave and giving it to Alcibiades. In which play, often considered experimental or unfinished, does this tragic death occur?

Answer: Timon of Athens

Unlike many of the Bard's works, "Timon of Athens" doesn't follow a specific plot diagram (i.e., Act I is exposition, Act III is the climax), and its contrast with the rest of Shakespeare's plays is notable. The title character is magnanimous with time and money at the start of the play, but his free spending and donations become problematic when he runs short on cash.

When he begs for funding from the friends to whom he had just given away so much money, they refuse. Betrayed, Timon insults his former pals and flees Athens.

Although he happens upon a treasure trove accidentally, he gives it away to Alcibiades, who is leading a revolt on the city that Timon now wants destroyed. Then he dies in the wilderness.
2. Shakespeare's ninth-bloodiest play sees two deaths, equally tragic. 1. Mamillius dies of grief, after his father Leontes imprisons his mother Hermione when the father believes his wife is committing adultery. 2. In quite possibly the most excellent stage direction in theatrical history, Antigonus delivers the baby Perdita to a remote locale before being chased off stage by a bear. Despite these deaths, everything turns out fine in which Shakespeare play?

Answer: The Winter's Tale

"The Winter's Tale" is commonly grouped in the Bard's canon as either a comedy or as a problem play, because although the ending is happy, some truly gruesome events occur in the first three acts. When a visitor from Sicilia (King Polixenes) meets with the King of Bohemia, Leontes, the reunion is happy at first. However, Leontes suffers a fit of severe paranoia, believing that his wife Hermione is engaging in an affair with Polixenes, so he orders the king killed and his wife imprisoned. Polixenes flees, Hermione gives birth to her (legitimate) child, and an Oracle prophesies that the woman is innocent. Leontes disagrees and tells his servant to abandon the child on the Bohemian seacoast. Hermione faints and is presumed dead; Leontes feels guilty, but there's nothing he can do now.

The child, named Perdita, is left alone in the wilderness when Antigonus is comically mauled by a bear offstage. She eventually falls in love with Polixenes' son Florizel. When Perdita learns of her heritage, she and her father reunite, and the two kings settle their dispute. At the end, it is revealed that Hermione hadn't been dead after all, but was hiding from her husband instead.
3. For a famous tragedy, this play sees *only* four deaths, earning it eighth in the countdown. 1. Roderigo, initially a conspirator in the plot, is stabbed to prevent him from divulging information. 2. Desdemona is smothered by a pillow by her husband in suspicion of adultery. 3. The title character commits suicide after he realizes that Iago's machinations have ruined his life. 4. Emilia is stabbed by her husband to prevent her from divulging information, too. Iago is also sentenced away for execution at the end of which Shakespearean tragedy?

Answer: Othello

One of Shakespeare's great tragedies, "Othello" takes place mostly on the island of Cyprus and features the villain Iago, who malevolently tries to ruin the military hero's life. When his first plot, to stop the marriage of Desdemona and Othello, fails, he concocts a more elaborate scheme: alienate Othello and his newly-appointed lieutenant, Michael Cassio.

Then, create the suspicion of a romantic affair between Cassio and Desdemona by a well-placed handkerchief. Iago's plan works; Othello smothers Desdemona in furious jealousy, but Iago's wife Emilia learns of the plot and alerts the Governor. Othello commits suicide in grief. Iago stabs Emilia, and he is ultimately taken away at the end of the somewhat-bloody tragedy.
4. What is it with Shakespearean title characters and suicide? The two in the title of this play, along with three others, create a respectable body count earning seventh in the countdown. 1. Fulvia, one title character's spouse, rebelled and died before the start of the play. 2. Enobarbus changes sides from the title characters in the midst of a war, then dies of a broken heart out of guilt. 3. Eros kills himself because he can't accede to a demand to kill the first title character. 4. The first title character commits suicide by stabbing. 5. The second title character dies from the bite of an asp. In which not-very-famous Shakespeare play about a famous legend do these deaths occur?

Answer: Antony and Cleopatra

"Antony and Cleopatra" is a tragedy that eludes the fame and success of Shakespeare's other works. Antony struggles throughout the play with his relationships between Octavius, the emperor of Rome, and his beautiful Egyptian love, Cleopatra. An incident with pirates in the Mediterranean turns Antony away from the famous triumvirate, and he engages battle against Octavius at Actium. Yet the soothsayer's prediction, that Antony will never win a battle against Octavius, holds true, because Cleopatra's ships flee the fray and Antony retreats after her.

A similar situation recurs the next time the two sides engage in battle. Angered by Cleopatra's cowardice, Antony vows to kill her. To regain his love, the queen fakes her own death. It doesn't work.

He (and a servant who fails to kill him) commits suicide instead. In remorse, and to avoid being used by Octavius' forces, Cleopatra voluntarily surrenders to a serpent's poison.
5. Five people die in another of the Bard's masterpieces, but this play earns sixth in the countdown because it also features a battle (Philippi). 1. The title character is assassinated by conspirators, even though his death had been foretold by a soothsayer, his wife, and a scholar. 2. The protagonist's wife Portia commits suicide by swallowing hot coals. 3. Cassius commits suicide when he thinks his friend Titinius has been killed. 4. Titinius commits suicide after he sees that Cassius has killed himself. 5. Brutus eventually realizes that everyone in his life has died, so he runs into his sword. Such tragic events occur in which bloody Shakespearean play?

Answer: Julius Caesar

"Julius Caesar" was one of Shakespeare's earliest plays, and its themes of regicide and revenge struck a deep chord with the Elizabethan audiences who wondered about the line of succession following the queen's death. The play centers around Cassius, an ambitious senator jealous of Caesar's power and fearful that his own authority might be compromised by a power-grab, and Brutus, another senator who is well-liked by the people. Cassius convinces Brutus that killing Caesar by joining a conspiracy would be beneficial to the city of Rome, and Brutus finally agrees.

Despite several predictions of Caesar's death, he is ambushed by the conspiracy, who stab him repeatedly before the leader's immortal last line, "Et tu, Brute?" Brutus and Cassius immediately run into trouble when Marc Antony and Octavius join forces to stop the senators from continuing the Republic.

In the climactic fifth act, Brutus and Cassius both die, causing their army to lose and beckoning in the new triumvirate and Roman Empire.
6. Coming in at fifth in a countdown is a play whose title characters' deaths are established in the prologue, but eventually come about from a cruel twist of fate. In addition to those two, four others perish in this work. 1. One person is stabbed, saying "A plague o' both your houses." 2. Then, his killer is furiously stabbed by one of the title characters. 3. When Paris gets in the way toward the end of the play, he also dies by the sword. 4. The first title character, thinking that the second title character is dead, swallows poison. 5. The second title character, realizing that the first title character really is dead, stabs herself. 6. Just to escalate the death count, one of the protagonists' mothers dies of grief in Act V. Body counts begin to escalate with the deaths found in which famous tragedy?

Answer: Romeo and Juliet

Although "Romeo and Juliet" is preceded by a prologue that foretells the unhappy ending of the play, the pathos established by the title characters' deaths is still effective. The story is well-known: the Montagues and Capulets are two feuding families in the city of Verona. Romeo Montague falls in love with Juliet Capulet at a ball that he wasn't invited to, then they kiss in a dramatic balcony scene.

After barely knowing each other, the lovers marry and probably would live happily ever after.

Unfortunately, on a hot day in Verona, Juliet's cousin Tybalt kills Romeo's friend Mercutio in a duel, and in revenge, Romeo kills Tybalt. For disturbing the peace, Romeo is banished in threat of death, so he flees the city. Juliet fakes her own death in the hopes that he can rescue her from the crypt and they can elope.

Unfortunately, like all faked deaths in Shakespeare, everyone, including Romeo, thinks that she really is dead. He kills Juliet's "husband-to-be" on the way into the crypt, then dies in her arms.

When she wakes up and realizes what has happened, she commits suicide too. Lady Montague, distraught over the tragedy, also dies (offstage) at the end of the play.
7. Some people call the play found at number four in the countdown "Shakespeare's shortest and bloodiest tragedy." It's not, because body count is "just" eight. However, it gets extra credit, because there are three characters known jointly as "The Murderers." 1. King Duncan is stabbed to fulfill Part I of the witches' prophecy. 2 and 3. In paranoia, the title character stabs two guards who might know about the bloody crimes he is responsible for. 4, 5, and 6. The title character hires Murderers to kill Banquo, fulfilling Part II of the prophecy. They also kill Macduff's wife and son. 7. After hallucinating bloodstains, the title character's wife probably commits suicide. 8. Macduff, who notably was "not from woman born," kills the title character, and Malcolm takes the throne, fulfilling the rest of the prophecy. Ambition for power ultimately kills eight in which canonical Shakespeare tragedy?

Answer: Macbeth

"Macbeth" famously opens with three witches, who encounter the Scottish generals Banquo and Macbeth travelling in the countryside. The witches prophesy that Macbeth will become king and Banquo's children will become kings, and like many clairvoyants in Shakespeare, they are correct. Having been promoted to thane, Macbeth, along with his even-more ambitious wife, seeks more power, which he achieves by murdering the reigning king of Scotland, Duncan. Lady Macbeth then plants the bloody dagger in the room with two bodyguards, to transfer suspicion for the murder. Macbeth eventually kills them, and as his power-lust grows stronger, he also commissions two murderers to get rid of Banquo too.

They kill Banquo, but his son Fleance escapes. While the ghost of Banquo tortures Macbeth's conscience, his wife sees bloodstains on her hands and eventually dies (it's uncertain if her death was a suicide).

The witches prophesy that Macbeth can only die when a forest comes to his castle, and then only by a man not born of a woman. Yet another thane, Macduff, was born in a Caesarian section, and when an army wielding weapons made from Birnham Forest attacks Macbeth's castle, the inevitable final death of the play can occur.
8. Now, at third in the countdown, we reach a truly bloody play, where nine characters meet their untimely demises. 1. The title character's father dies (some time shortly before the action starts) when his brother puts poison in his ear while sleeping. 2. The Prime Minister is stabbed when he is spying from behind a curtain. 3. The title character's girlfriend drowns (whether or not it was suicide is unclear). 4. The title character's mother is poisoned by a cup of wine intended for her son. 5. The title character dies in a fencing match from a poisoned sword. 6. His opponent in that fencing match dies from that same sword. 7. The antagonist, the title character's uncle, dies both from the poisoned wine and the poisoned sword. 8 and 9. The Ambassador points out at the end of the play that "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead," which opened the opportunity for Tom Stoppard's famous parody play. In which extremely famous Shakespeare play do all of these characters meet their ends?

Answer: Hamlet

Shakespeare's "Hamlet" is a story of revenge, but the philosophical themes that Hamlet approaches in several soliloquies discuss the existential nature of life and death and of sanity and madness. The plot opens when Hamlet meets the ghost of his father, who tells the Prince of Denmark that his brother Claudius, now king, was responsible for his death. Hamlet attempts to avenge his father's death by killing Claudius, but he accidentally kills Polonius instead. Polonius' daughter Ophelia, also Hamlet's ex-girlfriend, goes insane and drowns in the river. Polonius' son Laertes, in grief for the deaths of two family members, conspires with Claudius to kill Hamlet by arranging a fencing match with a poisoned sword and a poisoned cup of wine for Hamlet. Everything goes wrong though: Laertes gets stabbed by the sword too, Gertrude drinks the poisoned wine, Hamlet attacks his uncle, and the stage is littered with bodies by the end of the scene.

By the time the deaths of two comical characters, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, are announced, the concept of mortality has been thoroughly explored.
9. Ten deaths is simply absurd for any play, but this Shakespearean tragedy gives new meaning to a body count. 1. Cornwall is attacked by a servant after he gouges out Gloucester's eyes. 2. That servant is then killed by Regan. 3. Oswald is killed by Edgar. 4. Regan is poisoned by Goneril. 5. Edmund dies in a duel with his half-brother. 6. Gloucester dies of surprise when he sees Edgar alive. 7. Goneril commits suicide after killing her sister. 8. Cordelia is hanged by an unnamed character. 9. The title character kills the murderer of his daughter. 10. The title character dies of grief after he realizes that all three of his daughters perished. Ten deaths, plus one character's eyes are gouged out- Shakespeare certainly didn't have difficulty showing gore in which of his tragedies?

Answer: King Lear

Act V of "King Lear" has one of Shakespeare's highest body counts (seven), but the deaths are only credible after the machinations earlier in the play. Lear, King of England, banishes his daughter Cordelia from the kingdom because she refrains from lying about how much she loves him. Lear's other two daughters, Regan and Goneril, conspire to remove the senile leader from the throne. Meanwhile, Edmund, the illegitimate son of the Earl of Gloucester, deeply aspires to a place of power, so he convinces his father that the legitimate son, Edgar, is engaged in treason. Edmund, Regan, Goneril, and Goneril's husband Albany vie against Cordelia, Lear, Edgar, and Gloucester for the kingdom, with the backdrop of a French invasion of Britain. Regan and Goneril compete for the attentions of Edmund, causing their deaths, and Edgar defeats Edmund in a duel. Cordelia dies at the hand of an unknown soldier, Lear dies of grief from her death, and Gloucester dies of shock when he realizes that his son Edgar (who had been dressed up as a madman) was still alive. By the end of the play, hardly any major characters are left alive.

Some scholars would add the Fool to the list of characters who die, but there is not consensus as to whether or not he does actually die.
10. Shakespeare's number one bloodiest play is hardly performed anymore precisely because it is so bloody. Fourteen characters die within five acts, one of them has her tongue cut out as well, and two sons are baked into pies and eaten. 1. Alarbus is sacrificed after his mother loses in battle. 2. In the midst of a battle, Mutius is killed by his father accidentally. 3. Bassanius is assassinated by Chiron and Demetrius at the instructions of Aaron the Moor. 4 and 5. Martius and Quintus are framed for the murder of Bassanius, and their heads are shown on stage after they have been decapitated. 6. A clown is executed, just because. 7. Aaron the Moor kills a nurse when she discovers that Tamora's newborn is his child. 8 and 9. Chiron and Demetrius have their throats cut by the title character and are baked into a pie. 10. Chiron and Demetrius cut out Lavinia's tongue and hands to stop her from revealing what they did to her. When the title character realizes what happened to his daughter, he decides to kill Lavinia. 11. Tamora eats the pie that her sons had been baked in, then is murdered by the title character. 12. Saturninus kills the title character before he can murder anyone else. 13. Lucius kills Saturninus in revenge for the death of his father. 14. Aaron is buried alive as punishment for his cruel deeds. Essentially, two characters are left alive at the end of which disarmingly-bloody Shakespearean play?

Answer: Titus Andronicus

"Titus Andronicus" is a story of revenge, just like "Hamlet", only nearly twice as gruesome. Titus defeats the queen of the Goths, Tamora, in battle, and brings her back to Rome. He sacrifices one of her sons against her wishes, so Tamora grows mad and vows revenge. Titus also accidentally kills one of his sons in a marriage squabble. Tamora marries another of Titus' sons, Saturninus, who becomes the new Emperor of Rome.

Aaron the Moor is Tamora's lover and wants to assist with her goals of revenge upon Titus, so he convinces Chiron and Demetrius to murder Bassanius (Titus' son) and rape Lavinia. They also cut out her tongue and dismember her hands, so that she can't say who committed the crime. Aaron convinces Saturninus that two of Titus' sons were responsible for Bassanius' death, and they are sent off to be executed. Aaron tells Titus that if he sacrifices a hand, his sons will be saved. Titus slashes off his hand, but the heads of his sons are paraded on the stage anyway.

Lavinia reveals with a stick who had attacked her, and Titus vows revenge. He kills a clown in his fury. Aaron kills a nurse when she realizes that Tamora's son is his, not Saturninus'. Titus kills Tamora's sons, then invites her to a feast, where he serves her a pie made from their flesh. Titus decides that he can't bear the dishonor inflicted upon his daughter, so he kills Lavinia. Then he kills Tamora. Saturninus kills Titus. Lucius, Titus' remaining child, kills Saturninus. Lucius becomes Emperor and sentences Aaron the Moor to death. And they (the two who survived the play, Titus' brother and his son Lucius) live happily ever after.
Source: Author adams627

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