This one-of-a kind miniature house was handcrafted in the 1730s. As that time, doll’s houses were not considered to be toys; rather, they were called “baby houses” and used to teach girls how to run a household.
Image Wikimedia Commons
Today’s Answers
Five questions today: a variation on a theme.
One
A Doll’s House (1879) was written by whom, and in what European capital city did it make its debut?
Answers: Henrik Ibsen; Copenhagen.
Henrik Ibsen’s three-act play A Doll’s House premiered in Copenhagen in 1879 and depicts a married woman in Norway. Despite sparking controversy it became the world’s most-performed play in 2006; UNESCO inscribed its manuscripts in 2001.
Two
What term best describes title character of Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s book One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich on the one day in question, and where is he?
Answers: Political prisoner; a Soviet Gulag (forced labour camp).
Sentenced to ten years for alleged spying, Shukhov survives a Gulag day through work in the 104th squad under Tyurin. He avoids illness, gains extra rations via productivity and services for Tsezar, and reflects on a fortuitous outcome.
Three
What publication which mentions Mount Zion and the Wicket Gate introduced the Slough of Despond; and in what decade was it first published?
Answers: The Pilgrim’s Progress; 1670s.
John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress was first published in 1678. At the start of his journey from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City atop Mount Zion, Christian is directed by Evangelist toward the Wicket Gate to seek deliverance from his burden of sin. Along the way, he falls into the Slough of Despond, a miry bog representing a sinner’s doubts and fears, but is rescued by a man named Help. After being temporarily led astray toward the false hope of the law at Mount Sinai, Christian is redirected by Evangelist and finally arrives at the Wicket Gate, which marks the true beginning of the straight and narrow path to his salvation.
Four
Who wrote the 2004 Booker Prize-winning novel The Line of …; and what word completes the title?
Answers: Alan Hollinghurst; Beauty.
Set in 1980s Britain, The Line of Beauty follows Nick Guest, a young gay man navigating his relationship with the wealthy Fedden family. It explores themes of privilege, hypocrisy, and sexuality against the backdrop of the emerging AIDS crisis.
Five
We’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet.
The following line originally written down as a poem is best known from the chorus of a song. What song, and who originally wrote it down as a poem?
Answers: Auld Lang Syne; Robert Burns (aka Rabbie Burns).
Originally written down in 1788 by Robert Burns, the lyrics of Auld Lang Syne are in the Scots language. The title, translated literally into standard English, is Old Long Since. The words can be interpreted as since long ago or for old times’ sake. The lyrics are about old friends having a drink and recalling adventures they had long ago but there is no specific reference to the new year.
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