Literary Death Trivia

1. Gandalf the Grey, of the 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy, became reborn in which colour after falling from the Bridge of Khazad-dûm?

From Quiz What Goes Down, Must...

Answer: White

Gandalf was the wise and powerful wizard who helped guide and protect the Fellowship in their quest to destroy the One Ring at Mount Doom and kill Sauron. "You cannot pass", he said as he faced off against the demonic Balrog at the Bridge of Khazad-dûm in Tolkien's 'The Fellowship of the Ring' (1954). The bridge collapsed with Balrog and Gandalf in tow, but the fight continued: through an icy subterranean lake with the chill of death; within deep and dark abyssal tunnels; atop the Endless Stair; and at Durin's Tower where the beast finally succumbed. However, so too did Gandalf, his spirit travelling "out of thought and time". He eventually did return. In his words: "Naked I was sent back - for a brief time, until my task is done.". When he was found by Galadriel and taken to Lothlorien, he was clothed in white, hence his 'rebirth' in white. White was a significant colour as it signified that Gandalf, not Saruman, was the most appropriate to lead the White Council formed by Elves and wizards to counteract Sauron's growing influence.

From Quiz Murder Most Foul

Answer: Daisy Buchanan

"The Great Gatsby" was written by F. Scott Fitzgerald and was published in 1925. Jay Gatsby is infatuated with Daisy Buchanan, with whom he had a romantic relationship prior to her marriage. Daisy Buchanan is married to Tom Buchanan. Tom Buchanan is having an affair with Myrtle Wilson. Daisy Buchanan hits Myrtle Wilson with Jay Gatsby's car. Jay Gatsby claims to have been driving the vehicle at the time. George Wilson shoots Jay Gatsby for killing his wife and then commits suicide.

From Quiz Another One Bites the Dust

Answer: Hamlet

One of Shakespeare's greatest achievements, "Hamlet" examines the force that exists behind one's emotions, particularly jealousy, grief, and rage. Ophelia, the object of Prince Hamlet's desire, goes mad when her father, Polonius, is accidentally killed by Hamlet in his mother's room. She is later found dead, tragically drowned in the river. Ophelia's insanity causes us to further question Hamlet's condition - is he really mad, or just acting?

From Quiz What Goes Down, Must...

Answer: Discworld

In Terry Pratchett's 'Discworld' series, Death was personified as a skeleton who could only be seen by those who believe in him. Whilst originally callous, he became more sympathetic and light-hearted as the series went on, coming to begrudge the inevitability of death and on occasion bending the rules to help people to survive at least for a while longer. One such bending was that he would offer the chance to retain one's soul if they could beat him in a game. Typically, this was impossible, but he could choose to lose as he once did playing poker with Granny Weatherwax (playing on behalf of a sick child). She had four Queens to his four Aces - he winked and considered them four 'ones' instead.

From Quiz Death Turns the Page

Answer: Little Women

"Little Women" was written by Louisa May Alcott in 1868-1869, and has been a classic with girls ever since. It also contains one of the most classic literary deaths of all time: that of the third of the four March sisters, Beth. Beth catches scarlet fever during a trip to a poor family, the Hummels, and although she recovers initially from the disease, she never gains back her strength. She finally dies surrounded by her family, and her death particularly affects her next-oldest sister, Jo.

From Quiz Another One Bites the Dust

Answer: A Tale of Two Cities

Sydney Carton, the unlikely hero of Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities," is initally a gruff, heavy-drinking, seemingly hollow man. However, he is given his chance at redemption when his physical counterpart, Charles Darnay, is going to be executed at the guillotine in France. Carton loves Darnay's wife Lucie so unselfishly that he will do anything - even give his own life - to make her happy. "It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest I go to than I have ever known."

From Quiz Death Turns the Page

Answer: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", written in 2007 by J.K. Rowling, was the 7th and last "Harry Potter" book. It chronicled the final battle between the Dark Arts, led by Voldemort, and the rest of the wizarding world, led by Harry, "The Boy Who Lived". Sadly, though, there are casualties in this battle; many of them, in fact. One of them is Fred Weasley, one of Harry's friend Ron's brothers. Earlier in the book, Fred's twin George had lost an ear, but Fred was killed during the Battle of Hogwarts, along with many others.

From Quiz What Goes Down, Must...

Answer: Horrific: mankind was enslaved under insane creatures

The vision was fantastically dreadful: humanity would become enslaved in perpetuity under insane horrors in a chaotic dimension. One such horror would then possess Mary Fay and attempt to kill Charles Jacobs who was running the experiment. Jamie Morton, acting as his assistant, shot the possessed Mary Fay and Jacobs subsequently had a fatal stroke. Jacobs was a faith healer who had been using 'special electricity' to heal people of illnesses and conditions: everyone he had 'healed' would eventually go insane. Morton survived, but took little solace in knowing where he would go once his time on Earth was up.

From Quiz Murder Most Foul

Answer: Artist of Gray's portrait

"The Picture of Dorian Gray" was written by Oscar Wilde and first published in 1890 in "Lippincott's Monthly Magazine". Basil Hallward paints a portrait of Dorian Gray, described in the novel as a "beautiful young man". Influenced by Lord Henry Wotton's hedonistic view point wherein the pursuit of pleasure surpasses ideas of good and evil, Dorian offers his soul if the portrait would carry the effects of ageing and not he. The portrait reflects all of Dorian's sins and corruption and becomes hideous. Basil confronts Dorian and upon viewing the now hideous portrait, urges Dorian to make restitution and repent for his sins. In a fit of rage, Dorian stabs Basil to death. Dorian later stabs the portrait in an effort to destroy it and ultimately kills himself. He is found, hideous and disfigured with a knife in his heart and the portrait as beautiful as the day it was painted.

From Quiz Death Turns the Page

Answer: Of Mice and Men

"Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck was published in 1937, and is more a novella than a full-length novel. It tells the story of Lennie, a large but mentally disabled worker, and George, a small but intelligent man who helps to keep Lennie out of trouble during the Great Depression. The two manage to find work on a farm, but disaster strikes when Lennie, who doesn't know his own strength, accidentally breaks the neck of the owner's wife. To save Lennie from hanging, George shoots him. Interestingly, Steinbeck noted that he loosely based the events in the story on something that he himself witnessed while working on a farm.

From Quiz What Goes Down, Must...

Answer: Balefire

A concept inspired from Buddhism and Hinduism is that, usually, nothing is truly created or destroyed in the Wheel of Time: "There are neither beginnings nor endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time". Whilst there were reincarnation 'rules' for certain beings, such as the Dragon, and for heroes, many of the specifics were left shrouded in obscurity. Balefire was a powerful taboo magic that could erase existence itself, and therefore could prevent any kind of rebirth, even that granted by the Dark One - the chaotic destroyer figure in the series' mythos. Due to the cyclical nature of the future and past in the Wheel, balefire could potentially bring people back to life retroactively if used on their killer(s).

From Quiz Murder Most Foul

Answer: Esmeralda

"The Hunchback of Notre-Dame" was written by French author Victor Hugo and published in 1831. Quasimodo is the half deaf, half blind hunchback who rings the bells of Notre-Dame Cathedral. Frollo is the Archdeacon of Notre-Dame and both are in love with a beautiful gypsy girl named Esmeralda. Frollo is obsessed with Esmeralda and unwittingly engineers her execution at the gallows, by attempting to kill the man that Esmeralda is in love with, Phoebes. Esmeralda is charged with this attempted murder, and Frollo laughs as she is hanged. Quasimodo pushes him from the cathedral and afterwards lies holding Esmeralda's body in the cemetery until he eventually dies, too

From Quiz Another One Bites the Dust

Answer: The Moonstone

Wilkie Collins' Victorian mystery novel "The Moonstone," documents the events surrounding an investigation into the loss of a precious gem. Several different narrators take turns relaying the events from their point of view, allowing the story to slowly unravel piece by piece. Rosanna Spearman is a maid at Lady Verinder's estate, where she tries to hide her shameful past, which included theft and other crimes. When the Moonstone goes missing, she seems somehow implicated, but when the case is finally resolved, the truth behind her involvement is very unexpected.

From Quiz Death Turns the Page

Answer: Anne of Green Gables

"Anne of Green Gables" was published in 1908 by Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery, and is set on Prince Edward Island, where an orphan girl named Anne "with an E" travels to her new adopted home, only to realize that a mistake has been made: her adoptees, siblings named Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert, were expecting a boy. Matthew persuades Marilla to let Anne stay on trial, however, and she soon wins the hearts of all those connected with her. The story ends with a tragedy, however: Matthew, on learning that he has lost all of his and Marilla's money, dies of a heart attack. The tragedy only serves to bring Marilla and Anne closer, however.

From Quiz What Goes Down, Must...

Answer: Consciousness

The protagonist, Takeshi Kovacs, is written of as being "180 light years from home, wearing another man's body on a six-week rental agreement" and was tasked with investigating the purported suicide of a rich man on Earth in the 25th century. Bodies set up for the purposes of consciousness transfer were called sleeves. Most people could afford to resleeve, but the burdens of ageing multiple times proved too unappealing for most, whereas the rich could afford to swap bodies at will and sidestep this issue. Without destroying the stack, someone was never 'truly' dead in essence. Although the author Richard Morgan had received a seven-figure sum from Warner for a film adaptation, it fell through, with Netflix instead running a television series in 2018.

From Quiz Murder Most Foul

Answer: Cane

"Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde" was written by Robert Louis Stevenson and published in 1886. Dr Jekyll, wanting to explore his dark side without fear of discovery and recrimination, develops a serum which allows him to transform into his "dark" persona named Mr Hyde. Mr Hyde is smaller and shorter than Dr Jekyll, but is infinitely more menacing and prone to anger. In a fit of rage, Mr Hyde beats Sir Danvers Carew to death with a walking stick, half of which remains with the body. Mr Utterson, a lawyer and friend to Dr Jekyll, suspects Mr Hyde of the murder and finds the other half of the walking stick in his rooms. Eventually Dr Jekyll realises that he cannot control the transformations any more, nor can he control the appetites of Mr Hyde and commits suicide in order to "kill" Mr Hyde. Mr Hyde gives no reason for killing Sir Danvers Carew, except that he was able to: "With a transport of glee, I mauled the unresisting body, tasting delight from every blow; and it was not till weariness had begun to succeed, that I was suddenly, in the top fit of my delirium, struck through the heart by a cold thrill of terror." (Ch. 10)

From Quiz Another One Bites the Dust

Answer: Porphyria's Lover

One of Browning's famous dramatic monologues, "Porphyria's Lover" addresses many of the issues circulating in Victorian society at the time it was written. Sexuality, violence, death, and aesthetics are examined in depth throughout Browning's poetry. Initially creating a classic Romantic image - a warm, simple interior contrasting with a stormy outdoors - Browning then departs from anything traditional, introducing themes of extramarital sex, obsession, and ultimately violence.

From Quiz What Goes Down, Must...

Answer: They would all eventually become crazed zombies.

Herbert West, as a medical student at Miskatonic University - a recurring venue in Lovecraftian works - postulated that the human body was an organic machine and as such could be 'restarted'. Therefore, he began experimenting on human cadavers with the help of an unnamed narrator. West used a range of different serums, none of which ended up working entirely as intended. His passion for his craft soon crossed a line - it was revealed by one of the revived cadavers that West actually was the one who killed him in the first place. By the last chapter, a zombie outbreak had taken place, with West voluntarily letting them disembowel him and the narrator going mad with all he had seen.

From Quiz Murder Most Foul

Answer: Grima Wormtongue

"The Lord of the Rings" is a trilogy made up of "The Fellowship of the Ring", "The Two Towers" and "The Return of the King", written by English Author J.R.R. Tolkein and first published in 1954. The events surrounding the death of Saruman and Grima Wormtongue take place after the fall of Mordor. The duo find themselves in the home of the hobbits, The Shire, where Saruman under the name of Sharkey has taken over. The diminutive heroes of the novel, the quartet of Frodo, Samwise, Merry and Pippin, help to liberate The Shire and free all the hobbits. Frodo magnanimously frees Saruman, but he kicks his servant Wormtongue in the face and insults him. Wormtongue sets on him with a knife and slits his throat, upon which the hobbit archers strike him down.

From Quiz Death Turns the Page

Answer: Lord of the Flies

"Lord of the Flies" was written in 1954 by William Golding. It tells the story of a group of schoolboys who find themselves stranded on an island. They believe that a Beast is roaming around, until one of the boys, Simon, discovers that it is just an airman's corpse, caught in trees and swinging in a parachute. Simon runs to tell the others but they, thinking that he is the Beast, rip him limb from limb. This is not the only death in this tragic story, which discusses the themes of group mentality and acts as an allegory.

From Quiz What Goes Down, Must...

Answer: The Monkey's Paw

W.W. Jacobs' 'The Monkey's Paw' was, quite literally, about a cursed and mummified monkey's paw. Mr. White's friend Sergeant-Major Morris brought the paw to a dinner, explaining that it granted three wishes, but which came with a hellish punishment for attempting to defy fate. He then threw it into the fireplace. White, against his friend's wishes, retrieved the paw and innocently wished for £200 to pay off his mortgage. His son was mysteriously found dead at his factory the next day. Struck with grief, his wife implored him to wish the son back to life; he capitulated but found that his son had taken a grotesque form. His final wish was left to the reader's imagination, but there is a strong implication that he wished either to undo the second wish or to make a visitor knocking at the door - implied to be his son - disappear.

From Quiz Murder Most Foul

Answer: Graveyard

"The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" was written by Mark Twain and published in 1876. It is notable for being one of the first novels ever to have been written on a typewriter. Tom and Huckleberry Finn went to the graveyard to perform a ritual for curing warts which entailed throwing a dead cat at the Devil and saying a rhyme at midnight in a graveyard. They encounter Muff Potter, Injun Joe and Dr. Robinson unearthing a corpse. Muff and Injun Joe try to extort more money from the doctor, but Injun Joe is after revenge too. Dr. Robinson fought bravely, but was stabbed in the chest by Injun Joe, who blamed the murder on Muff Potter who had been knocked unconscious in the scuffle.

From Quiz Death Turns the Page

Answer: To Kill a Mockingbird

"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee was published in 1960; it won a Pulitzer Prize in 1961. It tells the story of a young girl, Scout Finch, and how her father defended Tom Robinson, a black man falsely accused of a crime. Scout's father, Atticus Finch, does his best to defend and protect Tom, but eventually Tom is condemned. He dies later in the book when he is shot while trying to escape prison.

From Quiz Murder Most Foul

Answer: Wife

"Frankenstein or, the Modern Prometheus" was written by Mary Shelley and published in 1818. Elizabeth was not the first to be murdered by the monster. Victor's brother William was his first victim, dying by strangulation as the monster sought to take revenge on Victor's family for the rejection he has suffered. The monster requests that Victor make him a mate and Victor reluctantly agrees. Midway through the project he decides to destroy the project in fear of creating a more evil being, having decided that his monster was evil. In retaliation the monster first kills a close friend of Victor, Henry Clerval and attempts to frame Victor for the murder. The monster threatens Victor that he will "be with [him] on [his] wedding night". The night of Victor's wedding to Elizabeth, the monster enters her bedchamber and strangles her.

From Quiz Another One Bites the Dust

Answer: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Injun Joe, the unforgettable villain in Twain's "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer," commits crime after crime without ever being caught. However, once Tom and Becky escape after being lost in a cave following a town picnic, Judge Thatcher ensures that the cave is bolted from the outside, to prevent any further incidents. Tom tells the Judge that Injun Joe is still in there. When the town opens the cave's door, they find him starved to death.

From Quiz Death Turns the Page

Answer: The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

"The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle contained the Sherlock Holmes story "The Final Problem", which was first published in 1893. This story contained the final confrontation between sleuth Sherlock Holmes and his enemy, the criminal mastermind Professor Moriarty. The two confront each other in Switzerland and, in a struggle, both fall off a cliff by Reichenbach Falls. Dr. Watson, Holmes' friend, is devastated and returns to England alone. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had wanted to kill the character of Holmes so that he could end the series. However, Holmes was so popular that when the Strand magazine published the story, the magazine saw thousands of cancelled subscriptions and Doyle was hounded by fans to bring Holmes back. This he finally did in the story "The Adventure of the Empty House", where Holmes is revealed to have survived the fall.

From Quiz What Goes Down, Must...

Answer: Sherlock Holmes & Sherlock & Holmes

Arthur Conan Doyle had become so associated with Sherlock Holmes that he felt as though he was being kept from writing historical novels and other 'more important' works. So, Sherlock had to die, and in a dramatic fashion at that - the recently visited Riechenbach Falls in the Swiss Alps seemed like the ideal backdrop. A public outcry lead to over 20,000 subscribers to the Strand Magazine unsubscribing, so although Conan Doyle really had 'killed' Sherlock here, he wrote another Sherlock story in 'The Hound of the Baskervilles' (1901) and explained how he'd evaded death in 'The Adventure of the Empty House' (1903). Agatha Christie had also had some issues in shaking off her famous detective, Hercule Poirot, who she stated a personal dislike of on several occasions. She had planned the deaths of both Poirot and Miss Marple to be published posthumously during the Second World War... she of course then survived for over thirty years to write many more Poirot books! Of course, both Poirot and Holmes have lived on through film, television and other adaptations.

From Quiz Another One Bites the Dust

Answer: Anne of Green Gables

Matthew Cuthbert is one of the most lovable literary characters ever written. In this first book of the "Anne" series by Lucy Maud Montgomery, readers witness the simple, beautiful, almost unspoken love that exists between Matthew and his adopted daughter, Anne Shirley. Matthew's death is heart-wrenching, particularly when Anne breaks down in the middle of the night from grief.

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