There, But for the Grace of God, Go I Quiz

Answer: Othello

But for the grace of God, I could have been Desdemona, married to the general Othello who had his mind poisoned by Iago. The evil Iago insinuated that Desdemona was in love with Cassio, leading Othello to kill her. Once he realised her innocence, Othello committed suicide.

Macbeth killed several people, but not his wife, and Hamlet was not married. 'The Tempest' was a comedy.

Answer: Emma Bovary

I was saved from being Emma Bovary by the grace of God. The character was created by Gustave Flaubert in his 1856 novel 'Madame Bovary'. Charles Bovary was the local doctor who married Emma after the death of his first wife. Although he was a kind man, his wife soon found him boring and became involved with a young student. Having been rejected by a second lover, Emma fell into debt and poisoned herself with arsenic in shame and despair.

'Therese Raquin' was written by Emile Zola and 'Justine' was a novel by the Marquis de Sade. 'Manon Lescaut' was written by Abbe Prevost.

Answer: Thomas Hardy

The heroine I was relieved not to be this time was poor Tess, from 'Tess of the d'Urbervilles'. The novel was published in 1891 and set in Wessex, an area in the south west of England, which includes parts of Dorset, Devon, Wiltshire and Hampshire. Stonehenge is in Wiltshire, and Tess was imprisoned, and later hanged, in the fictional Wintoncester, which was Hardy's name for Winchester, in Hampshire.

Scott, Wells and Huxley were all writing at much the same time as Hardy.

Answer: Constance Chatterley

The lady in the description appeared in 'Lady Chatterley's Lover', the novel by D H Lawrence which was banned in many countries, including Australia, the USA and Canada. It was the subject of an obscenity trial in the UK in 1960, when the publishers, Penguin, were prosecuted for publishing obscene material. The novel explored Constance's need for physical affection, which she found with the gamekeeper, Oliver Mellors. The novel has much more depth than what it is often remembered for - its use of Anglo-Saxon language.

Molly Bloom appeared in 'Ulysses', by James Joyce, and the other novels referenced in the answer options were Daniel Defoe's 'Moll Flanders' and 'The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie', by Muriel Spark.

Answer: The Forsyte Saga

If not for the grace of God, I could have been Irene Forsyte. 'The Forsyte Saga' comprised five novels, published between 1906 and 1921, written by John Galsworthy. The first book, called 'A Man of Property', was focused on Soames Forsyte, who treated his wife, Irene, as one of his possessions, even to the extent of forcing himself upon her sexually. His plan to hide her in the country, so only he can see her, backfired when she fell in love with the architect designing the country house and left Soames following his brutality to her.

'The Chronicles of Barsetshire' were written by Anthony Trollope in the late nineteenth century. 'Brideshead Revisited' was by Evelyn Waugh and published in 1945 while 'The Ballantyne Novels', written by Wilbur Smith, were much later, coming out in the 1980s.

Answer: Vladimir Nabokov

The grace of God saved me from being a heroine created by any of these Russian authors, but it was Dolores Haze, from the novel 'Lolita', I was describing. Nabokov's novel was first published in Paris, in 1955, and told about the obsession of Humbert Humbert for the twelve year old Dolores, whom he named 'Lolita'. He married her mother to ensure access to the daughter, with the story ending badly for both.

Boris Pasternak created Lara, from 'Doctor Zhivago' and Tolstoy's tragic heroine was 'Anna Karenina'. Ivan Turgenev wrote about Elena, in 'On the Eve', who also led a less than happy life.

Answer: Nancy

Nancy appeared in the novel 'Oliver Twist', taking a maternal interest in Oliver and trying to help him escape from Fagin's gang. She was killed by Bill Sikes, who believed she had informed on him to the police. He died by hanging, either deliberately or accidentally - the novel does not make it clear. But for the grace of God, I could have been involved in criminal activities.

Little Dorrit appeared in the novel of the same name, while Lucie Manette was in 'A Tale of Two Cities'. Dora Spenlow was a character in 'David Copperfield', all of them being created by Charles Dickens.

Answer: R D Blackmore

I could have been Lorna Doone, but for the grace of God. My story was told in the novel of the same name which came out in 1869. Lorna was an apparent member of the Doone family, a lawless band of ruffians, and destined to marry the heir, Carver Doone. Having met, and fallen in love with, John Ridd, Lorna was found to be an heiress, destroying her plans for marrying the worthy John. All ended well; after John was given a title the marriage went ahead with Lorna surviving her injuries and Carver coming to a sticky end.

The other authors listed gave us, among others, 'Vanity Fair' (Thackeray), 'The Moonstone' (Collins) and 'The Children of the New Forest' (Marryat).

Answer: Beth March

The character I was pleased not to be this time appeared in Louisa May Alcott's 'Little Women'. Beth was almost too good to be true, spending her time looking after people and animals, with her only hobby being the playing of hymns, which rather indicated that she was not long for this world. Her death did inspire Jo to make the best of her own life, though.

Margaret Dashwood was the younger sister to the main characters, Elinor and Marianne, in 'Sense and Sensibility' while Kitty Bennett was the fourth daughter of the five sisters in 'Pride and Prejudice' - both novels written by Jane Austen. Lucy Pevensie was the younger sister in the 'Chronicles of Narnia', by C s Lewis.

Answer: The Mill on the Floss

All the titles listed were written by George Eliot, but Maggie was the heroine whose fate I would have preferred not to share. 'The Mill on the Floss' covered her life from the age of nine and through two love affairs, the latter of which brought her into disgrace, since the man in question was promised in marriage to her friend. Maggie was redeemed while trying to rescue the said friend from a flood, which led to death for both her and her brother.

The novels listed were written between 1859 and 1872, with 'Adam Bede' followed by 'The Mill on the Floss', then 'Silas Marner' and 'Middlemarch'. Eliot wrote seven novels in all as well as poetry and essays.