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Medieval literature
Contributed by: Leigh
  • 1. Medieval literature refers to literary works created during the Middle Ages, a time period that spans roughly from the 5th to the 15th century. This era saw the development of various forms of literature, including epic poetry, romance, religious writings, and drama. Many famous works from this time, such as Beowulf, Dante's Divine Comedy, and Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, continue to be studied and celebrated today for their rich storytelling, complex characters, and exploration of themes like chivalry, faith, and the human experience. Medieval literature often reflects the values, beliefs, and societal structures of the time, offering unique insights into the cultural and intellectual history of the medieval period.

    Who wrote 'The Canterbury Tales'?
A) Geoffrey Chaucer
B) Homer
C) William Shakespeare
D) Jane Austen
  • 2. Who is the author of 'Le Morte d'Arthur'?
A) Miguel de Cervantes
B) Dante Alighieri
C) Sir Thomas Malory
D) John Donne
  • 3. Which medieval work is a collection of allegorical stories about morality?
A) Beowulf
B) The Canterbury Tales
C) Le Morte d'Arthur
D) Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
  • 4. Which medieval poet wrote 'Pearl'?
A) John Milton
B) Anonymous
C) Sir Thomas Malory
D) Geoffrey Chaucer
  • 5. Where is the setting of the epic poem 'The Song of Roland'?
A) Spain
B) Italy
C) France
D) England
  • 6. Which medieval work narrates the story of King Arthur and his knights?
A) The Divine Comedy
B) Le Morte d'Arthur
C) The Faerie Queene
D) Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
  • 7. In 'The Miller's Tale' from 'The Canterbury Tales', who is the young wife more interested in?
A) Nicholas
B) Alisoun
C) Absalom
D) John
  • 8. Who wrote 'The Romance of the Rose'?
A) Marie de France
B) Guillaume de Lorris and Jean de Meun
C) Chrétien de Troyes
D) Guillaume Apollinaire
  • 9. Which medieval work features the character of Satan as a central figure?
A) Le Morte d'Arthur
B) Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
C) Paradise Lost
D) The Divine Comedy
  • 10. Who is the main character in 'Le Morte d'Arthur'?
A) Tristan
B) Sir Gawain
C) Lancelot
D) King Arthur
  • 11. What is the title of the Old English poem that describes the hero's journey to defeat the monster Grendel?
A) The Canterbury Tales
B) Beowulf
C) Le Morte d'Arthur
D) Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
  • 12. Which medieval writer is best known for the epic poem 'Parzival', which tells the story of the Grail Knight Parzival's quest for the Holy Grail?
A) Hartmann von Aue
B) Gottfried von Strassburg
C) Wolfram von Eschenbach
D) Chrétien de Troyes
  • 13. Who is the author of the medieval allegorical poem 'Confessio Amantis', a collection of moral tales framed by a confession to the god of love?
A) Geoffrey Chaucer
B) John Gower
C) William Langland
D) Christine de Pizan
  • 14. Which medieval writer is known for his work 'The Divine Comedy', an epic poem in three parts: Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso?
A) Thomas Malory
B) Marie de France
C) Geoffrey Chaucer
D) Dante Alighieri
  • 15. In 'Sir Gawain and the Green Knight', what is the significance of the green girdle given to Gawain by Lady Bertilak?
A) Sign of loyalty
B) Token of forgiveness
C) Symbol of love
D) Protection from harm
  • 16. What is the most famous work of medieval Welsh literature?
A) The Faerie Queene
B) King Arthur and His Knights
C) Mabinogion
D) Lysistrata
  • 17. What literary device is prominent in 'The Faerie Queene' by Edmund Spenser?
A) Simile
B) Irony
C) Metaphor
D) Allegory
  • 18. In Chaucer's 'The Canterbury Tales', what is the occupation of the Wife of Bath?
A) Weaver
B) Knight
C) Miller
D) Squire
  • 19. Which medieval poet wrote 'The Faerie Queene', an epic poem celebrating the Tudor dynasty and blending chivalric romance with allegory?
A) Christopher Marlowe
B) Edmund Spenser
C) John Milton
D) Ben Jonson
  • 20. What is the name of the mysterious unnamed poet behind 'Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'?
A) The Pearl Poet
B) Geoffrey Chaucer
C) William Langland
D) Sir Thomas Malory
  • 21. In the medieval romance 'Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart', who kidnaps Queen Guinevere and takes her to a castle?
A) Gawain
B) Arthur
C) Lancelot
D) Meleagant
  • 22. Which epic poem tells the story of the Trojan War?
A) The Aeneid
B) The Divine Comedy
C) The Iliad
D) Beowulf
  • 23. Which medieval writer is known for his collection of fables, including the stories of 'The Tortoise and the Hare' and 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf'?
A) Euripides
B) Sappho
C) Aesop
D) Homer
  • 24. Who wrote the medieval allegorical poem 'Piers Plowman', which follows the journey of the everyman figure named Piers?
A) John Gower
B) Christine de Pizan
C) William Langland
D) Geoffrey Chaucer
  • 25. What is the name of King Arthur's legendary sword?
A) Durandal
B) Caladbolg
C) Excalibur
D) Joyeuse
  • 26. Which medieval epic poem features the character Roland, a legendary knight?
A) The Nibelungenlied
B) The Song of Roland
C) The Lay of the Cid
D) The Poem of the Cid
  • 27. Which medieval writer is known for the collection of stories 'Decameron', in which ten people tell tales while escaping the Black Death in Florence?
A) Giovanni Boccaccio
B) Dante Alighieri
C) Francesco Petrarca
D) Luigi Pulci
  • 28. Who is the author of the medieval allegorical poem 'The Consolation of Philosophy', written while in exile and exploring the nature of good and evil?
A) Geoffrey Chaucer
B) William Langland
C) John Gower
D) Boethius
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