Literature: Something in Common Trivia

1. In his break-through text, philosopher and semiotician Roland Barthes formulated five codes of literature. Which one is the code of enigmas and puzzles?

From Quiz Pass, Door, Word and Code

Answer: Hermeneutic

Roland Gérard Barthes (1915-1980) was a French philosopher, literary theorist, essayist, critic, and semiotician. One of his most influential works is the essay "The Death of an Author", in which he formulated his theory of literature. His five narrative codes are: 1) Hermeneutic code: the code of enigmas or puzzles; 2) Proairetic code: the code of actions; 3) Semantic code: the accumulation of connotative elements; 4) Cultural code: the voice of science or knowledge; 5) Symbolic code: the voice of the symbols. Hermeneutics is the theory of interpretation of texts.

From Quiz Will the Real Shakespeare Please Stand Up

Answer: The Tempest

In 'Forbidden Planet', the parallel to Caliban is the uncontrollable "Id" of Dr. Morbius, a scientist marooned with his daughter on Altair IV. To Morbius' daughter, the men of the rescue ship (especially the captain) represent a "brave new world". Ariel, Prospero's agent, becomes Robbie the Robot. While Prospero foresees the end of the "great globe", Morbius himself brings on the destruction of his planet.

From Quiz Ten Books on my Bedside Table

Answer: Arms

"A Farewell to Arms" was heavily based on Hemingway's own experiences as an ambulance driver in the Italian campaign theater during the first world war, although it was not autobiographical. He did fall in love with a nurse who aided him when he was injured but that romance did not survive beyond the war. The book depicts the ugly reality of war rather than celebrating the heroism which is often the focus of war novels. This novel was critically acclaimed and considered one of his best works.

From Quiz The Best Sellers

Answer: A Tale of Two Cities

Charles Dickens most often published his works in monthly installments but "A Tale of Two Cities" was a weekly endeavor, published as thirty one installments during 1858 in "All the Year Round" magazine. In contrast with his other novels, "A Tale of Two Cities" contains very little humor. "A Tale of Two Cities" has been adapted for the movies at least seven times, the most successful and Oscar nominated was the 1935 version that starred Ronald Coleman as Sydney Carton. Many quote the opening lines of the novel: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair...."

From Quiz Books for Cooks

Answer: Agatha Christie

Mrs Ariadne Oliver makes regular appearances in Agatha Christie's novels, normally those featuring Hercule Poirot. She is a fictionalised version of Christie herself, and is depicted as an author of detective stories. Ariadne is a great believer in female intuition, although her instincts are usually doomed to failure. Ariadne made her first appearance in 'Cards on the Table' in 1936 and her character turned up in seven novels in total. Jamie Oliver, also known as 'The Naked Chef', has appeared on several television shows in both his native United Kingdom and in the United States of America. He campaigns regularly to promote healthy eating, particularly in schools.

From Quiz What Do These Works Have in Common?

Answer: Man Booker prize winners

"The God of Small Things" by Indian author Arundhati Roy won the Man Booker prize for fiction in 1997; "True History of the Kelly Gang" was Australian Peter Carey's winning work in 2001 and "Life of Pi" was the winner in 2002 (Canadian Yann Martel was the author).

From Quiz These Books Fill a Much Needed Void!

Answer: Stealing books

It was indeed a study of book thieves and book stealing in general throughout history. More recently, Allison Hoover Bartlett also released a true-crime book known as "The Man Who Loved Books Too Much", which followed a similar theme.

From Quiz Chronicles

Answer: Isaac Asimov

Russian born Isaac Asimov was a prolific writer of science fiction and is best known for his "Foundation" series. He also indulged in fantasy and mystery stories. A long time member of Mensa International, he endeavoured to make science accessible to everyone by providing manuals that were easy to understand without being patronizing. His best examples include the reader-friendly three volume set, "Understanding Physics", published in 1966. In addition to physics Asimov also provided works that covered subjects as diverse as astronomy, William Shakespeare, the Bible and mathematics. Over the course of his career he managed to put works in all of the major categories of the Dewey Decimal System.

From Quiz Well-Read, Long-Dead

Answer: A Tale of Two Cities

In "A Tale of Two Cities" Dickens draws parallels between the plight of the poor in London and in pre-revolutionary Paris. The subsequent violence inflicted upon the French aristocracy by the revolutionaries perhaps served as a warning to the ruling class in England. Wildly popular during his lifetime, Dickens' novels have never gone out of print, despite more than a century having passed since his death in 1870.

From Quiz "It was a Dark and Stormy Night"

Answer: Mark Twain

Mark Twain had originally planned for the story to be serialized in "The Atlantic Monthly" journal, with other famous authors contributing to the story. This never happened however, and the work remained unfinished. The Buffalo and Erie County Public Library, home of the original manuscript of "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" bought the publication rights to the story and conducted a contest to write a conclusion to it. The winner of the international competition was actually a Buffalo native and was selected by a panel of scholars and bestselling authors. The winning entry was appropriately published in "The Atlantic Monthly".

From Quiz Let's Write a Book Together!

Answer: Peter Straub

Stephen King and Peter Straub first collaborated on "The Talisman", and then came together again for the sequel, "Black House". Many fans of the two books feel that a third is needed to complete the story. In his own right Peter Straub has won the Bram Stoker Award, World Fantasy Award and International Horror Guild Award.

From Quiz Word Smiths

Answer: Adam Smith

Smith developed the idea of the "invisible hand" upon which free-market economics are still, to a large extent, based. His "Wealth of Nations" was published in 1776. An interesting tidbit I see upon researching him is that he was apparently abducted by gypsies as a child, but rescued.

From Quiz Celebrities Can Read!

Answer: Little Women

"Little Women" was Louisa May Alcott's best-known book; it was one of a series of semi-autobiographical books about the March sisters growing up in 19th century Massachusetts. In the "Friends" episode, Joey had agreed to switch books with Rachel, and he ended up being engrossed in "Little Women".

From Quiz Connect Four Literature

Answer: All are characters in "Bridges of Madison County"

"Bridges of Madison County", written by Robert James Waller, has been translated into 25 languages. Over 12 million copies have been sold worldwide. The book spent nearly 150 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. In 1995, after a movie was released based on the book, the novel actually beat out "Gone With the Wind" as the best selling fiction book of all time.

From Quiz Tom, Dick and Harry in Literature

Answer: Thomas Hughes

Thomas Hughes was author of "Tom Brown's School Days" (1856). This novel is set in an English public school. Dr Thomas Arnold was the headmaster of the school. Although Thomas Hughes frequently denied it, it was a semi-autobiographical account of the author's school days at Rugby. Hughes claimed the character of Tom Brown was based on at least twenty boys.

From Quiz Names Lost in Translation

Answer: Diagon Alley

Privet Drive became the "Ligusterweg", Magnolia Crescent the "Magnolienweg", and Nocturn Alley the "Nokturngasse". This was, quite obviously, done so that children reading the book could get a better image of what those places look like. "Winkel" means "angle", and there's the adjective "verwinkelt", which is often used to describe alleys such as Diagon Alley. Other "Germanized" names in the HP books are "Fuchsbau" (The Burrow), "Feuerblitz" (Firebolt), and "Seidenschnabel" (Buckbeak).

From Quiz "Pride and Prejudice" v. "Bridget Jones' Diary"

Answer: Colin Firth

Colin Firth plays two 'Mr Darcys' - Mark Darcy in "Bridget Jones' Diary" and FitzWilliam Darcy in "Pride and Prejudice". Although Crispin Bonham-Carter did film some scenes for "Bridget Jones' Diary" mostly they weren't used in the final cut.

From Quiz Book of the Month Club Books

Answer: William Butler Yeats

In Yeats "The Second Coming," the poet writes, "Things fall apart; the center cannot hold; / Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world." Achebe's novel is considered by many academics to be the seminal African novel. It depicts, with some ambiguity, the fate of a people as the ties that bind their culture are threatened by both colonization and evangelization.

From Quiz Literary Sneers, Snits and Scandals

Answer: Mary McCarthy

Mary McCarthy tossed off many piquant quotes during her life, including the observation that "religion is only good for good people".

From Quiz Books Never Written -- Yet Written About

Answer: 'The Abortion: An Historical Romance 1966' (by Richard Brautigan)

(A is for Abortion) 'The Abortion' is about a trip to Tijuana for an abortion, but also about a library which acts as a repository for unpublished manuscripts. (Of the wrong choices, the only other one that is actually a novel is Bradbury's, and the many books mentioned in 'Fahrenheit 451' are all real. Wolfe's 'Acid Test' recounts the history of Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters, and although it discusses hippie-era literature, the books mentioned are all real. The Enormous Room is cummings' war memoir.)

From Quiz Book Dedications

Answer: Herman Melville

Melville dedicated 'Moby Dick' to his friend {Hawthorne;} 'Israel Potter' was dedicated to the Monument and 'Pierre' to Graylock, which Melville could see from his Pittsfield home 'Arrowhead'.

From Quiz Speculative Fiction Books and Authors

Answer: Umberto Eco

Eco was an Italian medieval historian, social commentator and semiotician (a studier of signs and symbols and their interpretation, a la Dan Brown's character Robert Langdon). "The Name of the Rose" was a historical mystery set in a 14th century monastery. In "Foucault's Pendulum" three bored publishing house editors amuse themselves by inventing a conspiracy theory involving an alleged treasure amassed by the Knights Templar; it's all fun and games until some powerful people start taking it seriously. Eco's 1997 book "Kant and the Platypus" concerned semiotics and was so dense he warned his fans "You have to stay on every page for two weeks with your pencil. In other words, don't buy it if you are not Einstein."

From Quiz Pass, Door, Word and Code

Answer: Othello

"Othello, the Moor of Venice" is a tragedy by William Shakespeare (1564-1616). "My story being done, She gave me for my pains a world of sighs; She swore, in faith, 'twas strange, 'twas passing strange" is part of a speech in Act 1, Scene 3, in which Othello, a general of the Venetian army, talks of his relationship with his wife, Desdemona. Othello is manipulated by the treacherous ensign Iago, who makes him believe his wife is unfaithful to him; maddened by jealousy and anger, he murders Desdemona. At the end of the play, when he learns that Desdemona was innocent, he commits suicide. As an adverb, "passing" means, in Shakespeare's works, exceedingly or extremely.

From Quiz Will the Real Shakespeare Please Stand Up

Answer: Something Wicked This Way Comes

'Something Wicked This Way Comes' combines elements of fantasy and horror--a perfect match for Macbeth. Both works deal with the struggle between good and evil inclinations in each individual.

From Quiz Ten Books on my Bedside Table

Answer: The Count of Monte Cristo

Alexander Dumas (père) set "The Count of Monte Cristo" within the historical events occurring during the Bourbon Restoration from 1815 to 1839. The story revolves around Dantès; how he was wrongfully imprisoned, escaped and became a highly successful man in Italy and then returned to avenge himself on those who so grievously wronged him. His vengeance, which has terrible consequences for the guilty and some innocents, then leads to a final forgiveness and perhaps moral redemption. This book has been made into a large number of movies, dating back to a silent movie of the same name in 1908.

From Quiz A-Z of Alliterative Authors

Answer: Great Britain

Having lived in the United Kingdom for 20 years, Bryson decided to go on a tour around the country before moving back to his native USA. He travelled to all corners of the island, from Cornwall in the far South West, to North East Scotland. In 2003, a BBC Radio 4 poll voted 'Notes from a Small Island' the book that best represented Great Britain.

From Quiz The Best Sellers

Answer: Think and Grow Rich

"Think and Grow Rich"(1937) was written by Napoleon Hill, inspired by industrial mogul Andrew Carnegie. An astonishing seventy million copies have been estimated sold. Although 'rich' is in the title, it is more of a guidebook for success in any area. The book places emphasis on a mind set and follows thirteen steps: Desire, Faith, Autosuggestion, Specialized Knowledge, Imagination, Organized Planning, Decision, Persistence, Power of the Master Mind, the Mystery of Sex Transmutation, the Subconscious Mind, the Brain, and the Sixth Sense.

From Quiz It's A Long Story

Answer: The Count of Monte Cristo

The first English translation of "The Count of Monte Cristo" appeared in 1846. Widely translated and perennially popular, it has been adapted for the stage, TV and cinema many times. The "Journal des Debats" came into existence at the time of the French Revolution, when it recorded the debates of the National Assembly. It continued, under different regimes and different names, until 1944, when it was suppressed following the liberation of France.

From Quiz What Do These Works Have in Common?

Answer: Authors who committed suicide

"Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" (subtitled "A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream") was written by Hunter S Thompson, an American author and journalist who ended his own life in 2005 at the age of 67. "Mrs Dalloway" was written by Virgina Woolf, a British author and feminist who drowned herself at 49 by walking into a river with a pocket of stones. Ernest Hemingway, who wrote "The Old Man and the Sea", commited suicide at age 62, following a sad family tradition of his father and grandfather.

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Last Updated Dec 21 2024 5:53 AM

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