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Quiz about 19th Century American Literary Men

19th Century American Literary Men Quiz

This quiz is about the lives of some 19th century American authors, their interactions and relationships.

A multiple-choice quiz by GLBlesi. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
GLBlesi

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
397,038

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
240

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Who wrote the first non-family biography of Mark Twain? Hint

William Dean Howells

Bret Harte

Henry James

Joseph Twichell

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Question 2 of 10

2. Which of these did NOT attend Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, with the others? Hint

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Franklin Pierce

Edgar Allan Poe

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Question 3 of 10

3. Who wrote the first campaign biography of Abraham Lincoln? Hint

Henry James

Nathaniel Hawthorne

William Dean Howells

Bayard Taylor

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Question 4 of 10

4. Which of these writers, born in New York City, spent the last three decades of his life in Europe, primarily England? Hint

Washington Irving

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

James Fenimore Cooper

Henry James

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Question 5 of 10

5. Which of these notable men was NOT born in 1809? Hint

Abraham Lincoln

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Edgar Allan Poe

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

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Question 6 of 10

6. Which of these literary men did not serve as a magazine editor? Hint

William Dean Howells

Charles Eliot Norton

James Russell Lowell

Henry James

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Question 7 of 10

7. Which of the following was born in Missouri? Hint

Herman Melville

Edgar Allan Poe

Walt Whitman

Mark Twain

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Question 8 of 10

8. Which of the following did NOT serve as a pallbearer for Nathaniel Hawthorne upon his death in 1864? Hint

Bronson Alcott

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

James Russell Lowell

Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Question 9 of 10

9. For the second edition of which famous book of poetry were Ralph Waldo Emerson's words printed in gold leaf on the cover: "I Greet You at the Beginning of a Great Career"? Hint

James Russell Lowell's The Biglow Papers

Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass

John Greenleaf Whittier's Ballads of New England

William Cullen Bryant's Tales of the Glauber Spa

10. Which of these authors loved to speculate and invest in new contraptions? He often lost a lot money doing so, his investment in the Paige Typesetter perhaps costing him the biggest chunk of his fortune. Hint

Henry James

Bret Harte

William Dean Howells

Mark Twain

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Who wrote the first non-family biography of Mark Twain?

Answer: William Dean Howells

William Dean Howells and Joseph Twichell were probably Mark Twain's two closest friends. As an editor, Howells helped to promote Twain's work. They kept up a monumental correspondence. Twichell was Twain's one-time minister.

2. Which of these did NOT attend Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, with the others?

Answer: Edgar Allan Poe

Hawthorne became a lifelong friend of both Longfellow and Pierce. He wrote the presidential campaign biography of Franklin Pierce.

3. Who wrote the first campaign biography of Abraham Lincoln?

Answer: William Dean Howells

Howells never met Lincoln in person but was given a consulship in Venice, Italy, as a reward for writing the biography.

4. Which of these writers, born in New York City, spent the last three decades of his life in Europe, primarily England?

Answer: Henry James

Many of James's novels have European settings. He visited his home country from time to time.

5. Which of these notable men was NOT born in 1809?

Answer: Nathaniel Hawthorne

Hawthorne was born in 1804. Although we think of Lincoln as dying young at age 56, Poe died much younger - at the age of 40. While Lincoln's life and achievement is known throughout the world, Poe may not be quite as well known. He is generally considered to be the father of detective fiction, but was also a poet.

6. Which of these literary men did not serve as a magazine editor?

Answer: Henry James

Henry James wrote novels, plays, short stories and criticism, but did not have any other career in his life.

7. Which of the following was born in Missouri?

Answer: Mark Twain

Mark Twain was the only one born in what was then considered the West. After going farther west as a newspaper reporter, he married and settled down in Connecticut.

8. Which of the following did NOT serve as a pallbearer for Nathaniel Hawthorne upon his death in 1864?

Answer: James Russell Lowell

Other pallbearers included Oliver Wendelll Holmes, Sr., and James Thomas Fields, the publisher. Longfellow was a fellow student with Hawthorne at Bowdoin College. Hawthorne, Emerson and Alcott all lived at Concord, Massachusetts.

9. For the second edition of which famous book of poetry were Ralph Waldo Emerson's words printed in gold leaf on the cover: "I Greet You at the Beginning of a Great Career"?

Answer: Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass

When Emerson read the manuscript, he wrote a flattering five-page letter to Whitman on its merits. This praise from a well-known essayist and philosopher helped in the wide distribution of and interest in the book.

Answer: Mark Twain

One of the sources of income Twain engaged in after a financial loss was to embark on national and international lecture tours.

Source: Author GLBlesi

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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