Not Famous First Lines, But... Quiz

Answer: However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering a neighbourhood...

The end of the quote is "this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families, that he is considered the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters." The quote beginning with "Mr. Wickham" is found in chapter sixteen, and the other two I have made up. However, Mrs. Bennet does turn and start talking to her husband shortly after this opening.

The opening of 'Pride and Prejudice' has opened itself to many parodies, including one in the book 'Reading Lolita in Tehran,' in which one of the girls states "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a Muslim man, regardless of his fortune, must be in want of a nine-year-old virgin wife."

Answer: There were a king with a large jaw and a queen with a plain face, on the throne of England

The queen with the fair face belonged to France, according to the novel. England's monarchs are mentioned first, in any case.

Taking place in the year 1775, this suggests that the large-jawed English king was none other than King George the Third, who is indeed remembered for more things than simply having a large jaw; notably, the American Revolution and supposed madness. Having an extremely long reign, he was the grandfather of Queen Victoria, the only person to have surpassed the length of his rule. The plain-face queen, then, must refer to Queen Charlotte, who was actually considered quite lovely at the time. The couple, married in 1861, had fifteen children and, to all appearances, had a happy marriage.

Our large-jawed French king must be Louis XVI, who had assumed the throne the previous year. He and his undeniably lovely wife are remembered almost exclusively for their ill management of the country, leading into the French Revolution.

Indeed, both of these kings had successful rebellions mounted against them. Coincidence?

Answer: Mr. Brooke

Meg says this next line. Each of the first four lines is stated by a different girl.

The first is Jo, obviously, who marries Professor Friedrich Bhaer. Jo is the reader, and, more importantly, the writer, the unconventional tomboy. She may sound spoiled here, but she has a generous heart.

Meg, as I have stated, says the next line. While she longs for fancy things, she marries Laurie's poor tutor, Mr. John Brooke. The oldest of the sisters, she is ladylike but ashamed of her poor position, at least in the start of the book.

Next, spoiled Amy says, "I don't think it's fair for some girls to have plenty of pretty things, and other girls nothing at all." The youngest, Amy is a painter and has the most ambition to move up socially. She marries Laurie, although he was at first more interested in Jo than anyone else.

Finally, Beth finishes the introductions with "We've got father and mother and each other." She is kind, sweet, musical, and delicate, and the family is devastated when she passes.

Each of these opening statements actually reveals a lot about the character of each of the girls. Jo's is a catalyst, forcing the other girls to speak, just as her actions invite others to act. Meg displays her hatred of being poor. Amy shows how she compares herself to others who have more than she, and Beth shows how dear and goodhearted she is.

Answer: cemetery, prison

The second line reads, "The founders of a new colony, whatever Utopia of human virtue and happiness they might originally project, have invariably recognised it among their earliest practical necessities to allot a portion of the virgin soil as a cemetery, and another portion as the site of a prison." For a grim statement, it's actually quite poetic. Hawthorne is obviously saying that, while there may be high ideals, the chances of a perfect (and deathless) society are pretty low, and so both a jail and a cemetery are necessary. Soon, Hester Prynne will emerge with her baby, bearing the scarlet 'A' that she uses to almost get back at the lawkeepers by embellishing and flourishing it.

Answer: A yellow dressing gown, ungirdled, was sustained gently-behind him by the mild morning air.

All three of the incorrect sentences are my own creation. As you can tell, they don't have the same poetic quality typical of Joyce

'Ulysses' is modeled from Homer's epic, 'The Odyssey.' Considered to be Joyce's masterpiece, it is the story of one day in the lives of his two main characters, Stephen Dedalus and Leopold Bloom, loosely Telemachus and Odysseus/Ulysses. The book is hardly written in a novel format; there are some narrative passages, but there are substantial portions of the book written as: a hallucination in play format, anecdotes about all but the main characters, newspaper clippings with exaggerated headlines describing the actions of the characters, extended stream-of-consciousness passages, analyses of other books (notably 'Hamlet'), questionnaires, and many, many forms of writing that I have not mentioned. Some of the story is hard to understand, but if you work through it, you will be in for a huge literary treat.

Answer: Francisco

Francisco, Bernardo, and Marcellus are all soldiers of some sort, though two are officers. Horatio does indeed appear in this scene. In fact, he tries to speak to the ghost of Hamlet's father and makes the decision to inform Hamlet about aforementioned spectre. He, however is not a soldier. Bernardo speaks more than Marcellus, and has this line, but neither talk much or are seen after this first act. Yorick is the man whose skull Hamlet picks up in the now famous graveyard scene. He was formerly a jester, and Hamlet loved him well.

The second line, by the way, is "Nay, answer me. Stand and unfold yourself." Unfold meant reveal, more or less.

Answer: Call me Ishmael.

All of these are Herman Melville quotes. "Call me Ishmael" is extremely famous, of course, harking from 'Moby Dick,' about Captain Ahab's search for the White Whale. It is also the right answer to my query. I suppose that you could have gotten this question correct if only for the reason that none of the other quotes listed are too famous. "It was the middle of a bright tropical afternoon that we made good our escape from the bay," is a quote from 'Omoo,' the sequel to "Typee." The main character in this novel gets captured on Tahiti. "Six months at sea! Yes, reader, as I live, six months out of sight of land; cruising after the sperm-whale beneath the scorching sun of the Line, and tossed on the billows of the wide-rolling Pacific-the sky above, the sea around, and nothing else!" is from 'Typee,' the semi-autobiographical story of Melville's experiences as a castaway on an island.

The last quote ("IN THE time before steamships, or then more frequently than now, a stroller along the docks of any considerable sea-port would occasionally have his attention arrested by a group of bronzed mariners, man-of-war's men or merchant-sailors in holiday attire.") is obviously incorrect, as it does not flow with the question well, but it is the first line of 'Billy Budd,' a novella, and actually quite famous.

It was not published until after Melville's death, leaving the door open for many disputes about how it is best represented.

Answer: Football

Football is the only sport with a real role in the book. Scout will sometimes get into fights, but she never had an organized match. Jem was mighty upset at one point, when Atticus declines to play in the Baptist-Methodist football game, citing that he was too old. Out of those four sports, football was the biggest in the South, in any case.

Answer: This was no such farm as one reads about in humorous fiction.

I made up the three incorrect answers.

Kate Chopin is, in my opinion, a very good writer. She is best remembered for 'The Awakening,' the story of Edna Pontillier, which, while not particularly popular during her lifetime, is now getting recognition as a piece of feminist literature. She is also known for many of her short stories. Personally, my favorites are 'A Pair of Silk Stockings' and 'Gentleman of Bayou Teche.' 'Desiree's Baby' is also good, but somewhat creepy.

Anyway, 'A Shameful Affair' is about Mildred, a bookish young woman, summering in the country. She secretly kisses a farmhand who both fascinates and repulses her; thus, a shameful affair.

Answer: That was all.

O. Henry is the pen name of William Sydney Porter. Writing over four hundred stories, he is thought to have brought the short story into a literary form in its own right. Living from 1862 to 1910, he was remembered for writing stories with a 'twist' ending and clever wordplay.

'The Gift of the Magi' is more likely than not his most famous story. There have been countless adaptations, including one starring Mickey Mouse! While most of the adaptations have strayed from Jim selling his watch for hair combs, and Della selling her hair for a watch chain, they remain in the original spirit of the work, the spirit of giving.