Bragging Rights Trivia Quiz

Answer: Pyrgopolynices

The figure of the "miles gloriosus" (braggart soldier) in the comic theatre of ancient Rome developed from the "alazón", one of the three stock characters in Greek comedy. This character saw himself as bigger and better than he actually was, and was prone to fabricating grandiose tales about his own feats.

In Plautus' famous play "Miles Gloriosus" (3rd century BC), the title refers to Pyrgopolynices (meaning "the one who tears down towers"), a foolish, vainglorious soldier who is constantly boasting about his accomplishments on the battlefield and in the bedroom, not realizing that he is about to be tricked. Plautus' work inspired the Stephen Sondheim musical "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" (1962), which also features a character called Miles Gloriosus.

Answer: Beowulf

Unlike most of the characters mentioned in this quiz, Beowulf - the protagonist of the Old English epic poem that bears his name (set in 6th-century Scandinavia, though very probably written later) - is a truly heroic figure. The boasting in which he indulges upon his arrival at the Danish court was considered perfectly legitimate in the Anglo-Saxon tradition.

Indeed, in an early medieval context, Beowulf's formal boasts were the equivalent of a modern résumé - showing that he had what it took to get the job done.

The hero does not disappoint, delivering the royal hall of Heorot from the threat of the monster Grendel and his equally bloodthirsty mother.

Answer: Don Juan

The character of legendary libertine Don Juan was first introduced in Spanish author Tirso de Molina's 1630 play "El burlador de Sevilla y el convidado de piedra" (The Trickster of Seville and the Stone Guest). The story had a moral intent, showing that unrepentant sinners such as the protagonist will eventually have to pay for their wicked actions. Don Juan is described as a young, wealthy playboy who takes great pride in his ability to seduce women of all ages and social stations, and also indulges in gambling and violence. Tirso de Molina's play inspired a large number of works about Don Juan, among them Lord Byron's epic poem of the same name (1821) and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's opera "Don Giovanni" (1787, with Italian-language libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte).

In Mozart's opera, Don Giovanni's servant Leporello does some boasting on his master's behalf, reciting a list of Don Giovanni's conquests in the famous aria "Madamina, il catalogo è questo".

Answer: Ivan Khlestakov

A civil servant with a well-developed imagination and a gambling addiction, Khlestakov is the main character in Nikolai Gogol's 1836 play "The Inspector-General", also known as "The Government Inspector". The play is structured as a comedy of errors, in which Khlestakov is mistaken for an incognito inspector by the corrupt officials of a small Russian town. Though at first unaware of the mistake, Khlestakov quickly takes advantage of the situation, pocketing large sums of money and getting engaged to the mayor's daughter.

The story was based on a real-life episode, in which fellow writer Alexander Pushkin - a good friend of Gogol's, and himself a larger-than-life character - had been mistaken for a government inspector during one of his trips around the country.

A film adaptation of "The Inspector-General", starring Danny Kaye, was released in 1949.

Answer: Josiah Bounderby

Together with his business associate, Mr Thomas Gradgrind, Mr Josiah Bounderby embodies the heartless nature of Victorian-era capitalism in Charles Dickens' novel "Hard Times" (1854). A factory owner, and one of the wealthiest men in the industrial town of Coketown, he lies about his origins, spreading the tale that his mother had abandoned him as an infant - when instead he had paid her to disappear from his life after he became a successful businessman. Bounderby's lies are eventually exposed; his loveless marriage to Gradgrind's daughter, Louisa, ends badly, and he dies alone.

Answer: Peer Gynt

The protagonist of Henrik Ibsen's eponymous play (1867), Peer Gynt is based on a figure from Norwegian folklore. In Ibsen's play, he is the son of a man who squandered his fortune, and disappoints his mother's hopes with his laziness and wild imagination; the play chronicles his adventures, which include encounters with supernatural beings as well as romantic entanglements.

Many of the characters in the play - which has a strong undercurrent of social satire - are based on members of Ibsen's own family. Ibsen asked Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg to write incidental music (what we would now call a score or soundtrack) for the play; from the composition, Grieg later extracted two four-movement suites.

The most famous of these eight movements, "In the Hall of the Mountain King", has been adapted by many musicians from different genres.

Answer: Rodomonte

First appearing in Matteo Maria Boiardo's epic romance "Orlando innamorato" (1483-1495), the Saracen king Rodomonte plays a prominent role in Ludovico Ariosto's "Orlando furioso" (1532). He is the leader of the Saracen army that besieges Charlemagne, the leader of the Christians, in Paris, and a warrior of great strength and courage - matched by his arrogance and penchant for boasting.

The word "rodomontade", meaning "boastful talk or behaviour", was first used in English in the 17th century by poet John Donne, and is also found in a number of later works.

Answer: Falstaff

Sir John Falstaff is one of William Shakespeare's most enduring creations. He appears in three of his plays ("Henry IV, Part 1" and "Part 2", and "The Merry Wives of Windsor"); he is also mentioned in "Henry V", when innkeeper Mistress Quickly delivers an eulogy for his death. Falstaff is said to have been inspired by Sir John Oldcastle, a leader of the Lollard movement (which preceded the Reformation), a close friend of Henry V. Shakespeare's character is also part of the inner circle of Prince Hal, the future Henry V. Falstaff is described as a fat, boastful knight who avoids fighting and spends most of his time drinking in questionable company.

In the comedy "The Merry Wives of Windsor", Falstaff tries to court two wealthy married women in the hope of getting access to their money, but ends up being humiliated before the whole town. Giuseppe Verdi's opera of the same name (1893), probably the best-known of the works inspired by this character, is based on "The Merry Wives of Windsor".

Answer: Baron Münchhausen

The character of Baron Münchhausen, created by German author Rudolf Heinrich Raspe in his book "Baron Münchhausen's Narrative of His Marvellous Travels and Campaigns in Russia" (1785), is loosely based on a real 18th-century German nobleman, Baron Hieronymus Karl Friedrich von Münchhausen, who was known for telling tall tales about his military exploits.

Not surprisingly, the Baron was none too happy about Raspe's book, and threatened a libel suit against its publisher - which led to the book being published anonymously.

The book, in any case, became a huge success, and was translated in various languages; in the 20th century it also had a number of film adaptations. Despite the outrageous nature of his stories, the Baron narrates them in a calm, matter-of-fact tone, resulting in an ironic effect.

The term "Münchhausen syndrome", used to describe patients who are prone to feigning illness in order to draw attention or sympathy to themselves, was coined by British physician Richard Asher in 1951.

Answer: Jay Gatsby

Young, handsome and fabulously wealthy, Jay Gatsby - the protagonist of Francis Scott Fitzgerald's 1925 novel "The Great Gatsby" - has often been referred to as the quintessential American hero. Born into a poor Midwest family, he rises to wealth and power through very shady dealings in the hope of winning the love of Daisy Buchanan, the upper-class girl he had met years before.

However, rather than emphasizing his status as a self-made man, Gatsby lies about his background, telling his only true friend, Nick Carraway (the story's first-person narrator), that his wealth was inherited, and that all his ancestors had attended Oxford University. Gatsby's charismatic character has been portrayed by several well-known actors, including Robert Redford and Leonardo DiCaprio.