- 1. William Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet, and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the 'Bard of Avon'. His extant works, including collaborations, consist of approximately 39 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and a few other verses. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.
In which century was William Shakespeare born?
A) 15th century
B) 16th century
C) 18th century
D) 17th century
- 2. What was the name of the theatre where Shakespeare's plays were often performed in London?
A) The Globe Theatre
B) The Blackfriars Theatre
C) The Swan Theatre
D) The Rose Theatre
- 3. What was the title of Shakespeare's first published work?
A) Much Ado About Nothing
B) Julius Caesar
C) Venus and Adonis
D) A Midsummer Night's Dream
- 4. Which of Shakespeare's plays is known as a 'tragedy of love'?
A) Romeo and Juliet
B) As You Like It
C) The Tempest
D) Twelfth Night
- 5. What is the name of the mischievous fairy in 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'?
A) Ariel
B) Puck
C) Oberon
D) Titania
- 6. Which play features the characters of Rosalind and Orlando?
A) Julius Caesar
B) As You Like It
C) King Lear
D) The Merchant of Venice
- 7. Who is the king of fairies in Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'?
A) Puck
B) Oberon
C) Titania
D) Peaseblossom
- 8. Which of Shakespeare's plays includes the line 'To be, or not to be: that is the question'?
A) Hamlet
B) Othello
C) Macbeth
D) King Lear
- 9. What is the name of the nobleman who is banished in 'Othello'?
A) Cassio
B) Iago
C) Desdemona
D) Bianca
- 10. In which city is 'Romeo and Juliet' set?
A) Milan
B) Venice
C) Verona
D) Florence
- 11. What is the name of the play where the character Portia appears?
A) Twelfth Night
B) Much Ado About Nothing
C) A Midsummer Night's Dream
D) The Merchant of Venice
- 12. Which play features the character of Prospero?
A) Othello
B) King Lear
C) Macbeth
D) The Tempest
- 13. What is the name of the character who is given the advice 'Brevity is the soul of wit'?
A) Claudius
B) Laertes
C) Polonius
D) Horatio
- 14. Who is the ruler of the Dukedom in 'The Tempest'?
A) Prospero
B) Gonzalo
C) Antonio
D) Caliban
- 15. Which Shakespeare play features the title characters Katherine and Petruchio?
A) A Midsummer Night's Dream
B) The Taming of the Shrew
C) Much Ado About Nothing
D) Twelfth Night
- 16. Whose ghost appears to Macbeth, saying 'Macbeth shall sleep no more'?
A) Banquo
B) Lady Macbeth
C) Duncan
D) Macduff
- 17. In 'Hamlet', who is Hamlet's uncle and the main antagonist of the play?
A) Polonius
B) Horatio
C) Laertes
D) Claudius
- 18. In 'The Merchant of Venice', which character demands a pound of flesh as payment?
A) Lorenzo
B) Antonio
C) Shylock
D) Bassanio
- 19. Who is the queen in Shakespeare's play 'Richard III'?
A) Queen Anne
B) Queen Margaret
C) Queen Isabella
D) Queen Elizabeth
- 20. Which of Shakespeare's plays is set in the ancient Roman Republic?
A) Coriolanus
B) Antony and Cleopatra
C) Julius Caesar
D) Titus Andronicus
- 21. Who is the queen of the fairies in 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'?
A) Hermia
B) Titania
C) Puck
D) Oberon
- 22. Who speaks the famous line 'All the world's a stage' in 'As You Like It'?
A) Jaques
B) Rosalind
C) Touchstone
D) Orlando
- 23. Which tragedy by Shakespeare features the character of Cordelia?
A) Hamlet
B) King Lear
C) Macbeth
D) Othello
- 24. Who is the king at the beginning of 'Macbeth'?
A) Hamlet
B) Duncan
C) Henry
D) Richard
- 25. Which play explores the themes of jealousy and revenge with the character Leontes?
A) Othello
B) Romeo and Juliet
C) The Winter's Tale
D) Macbeth
- 26. Which Shakespearean play is known as 'The Scottish Play'?
A) Julius Caesar
B) King Lear
C) Macbeth
D) Twelfth Night
- 27. In 'Macbeth,' what apparitions do the witches show Macbeth?
A) An armed head, a bloody child, a crowned child holding a tree
B) A ghost, a mirror, a ring
C) A cauldron, a dagger, a snake
D) Thunder, lightning, rain
- 28. Who famously says 'The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers'?
A) Iago (Othello)
B) Puck (A Midsummer Night's Dream)
C) Dick the Butcher (Henry VI, Part 2)
D) Lady Macbeth (Macbeth)
- 29. Who is the young nobleman who joins a group of outlaws in the Forest of Arden in 'As You Like It'?
A) Jaques
B) Touchstone
C) Oliver
D) Orlando
- 30. What was the name of Shakespeare's wife?
A) Anne Hathaway
B) Juliet Capulet
C) Cleopatra
D) Desdemona
- 31. Which comedy by Shakespeare features twins Viola and Sebastian?
A) Love's Labour's Lost
B) As You Like It
C) The Comedy of Errors
D) Twelfth Night
- 32. Which of Shakespeare's plays is classified as one of the 'problem plays'?
A) Pericles
B) The Winter's Tale
C) Measure for Measure
D) Cymbeline
- 33. What is the name of Romeo's cousin in 'Romeo and Juliet'?
A) Paris
B) Benvolio
C) Mercutio
D) Tybalt
- 34. Which of Shakespeare's plays is a tragedy about jealousy and betrayal?
A) A Midsummer Night's Dream
B) The Comedy of Errors
C) Othello
D) Twelfth Night
- 35. Who is the comic relief character in 'Romeo and Juliet'?
A) Benvolio
B) Mercutio
C) Tybalt
D) Paris
- 36. In which English town was Shakespeare born?
A) London
B) Cambridge
C) Oxford
D) Stratford-upon-Avon
- 37. What is the famous line said by Hamlet in the play 'Hamlet'?
A) To be, or not to be: that is the question
B) If you prick us, do we not bleed?
C) All that glisters is not gold
D) All the world's a stage
- 38. Who is often referred to as the Bard of Avon?
A) Christopher Marlowe
B) John Donne
C) Ben Jonson
D) William Shakespeare
- 39. What title is given to the play where the line 'Now is the winter of our discontent' appears?
A) The Tempest
B) Henry V
C) Richard III
D) Measure for Measure
|