literature – Page 34 – Quizology Online

If I’d a knowed what a trouble it was to make a book I wouldn’t a tackled it and aint’t agoing to no more—Answer

Mark Twain
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a novel by Mark Twain, was published in the UK in 1884 and the US in 1885. The book’s narrator, Huckleberry Finn, uses simple language to describe scenes, characters, and narrate the story with humour and irony.

Huck runs away from his abusive father and travels down the Mississippi River with Jim, a runaway slave. Along the way, he meets various characters and learns to overcome racial prejudices and respect Jim. The book describes the river and surrounding forests, showcasing Huck’s good nature and humour. However, it also highlights human cruelty, both individual acts and societal institutions like slavery.

Twain’s novel, along with The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, revolutionised children’s and American literature by presenting a realistic portrayal of boyhood. It’s a classic of American realism, especially for its depiction of the pre-Civil War South through dialect. This realism sparked controversy in the late 20th century, with some finding the language offensive. Despite Huck’s friendship with Jim, the book was considered racist. The publication of a bowdlerised version in 2011 generated further debate and was deemed equally unacceptable.

If I’d a knowed what a trouble it was to make a book I wouldn’t a tackled it and aint’t agoing to no more

Tom’s most well, now, and got his bullet around his neck on a watch-guard for a watch, and is always seeing what time it is, and so there ain’t nothing more to write about, and I am rotten glad of it, because if I’d a knowed what a trouble it was to make a book I wouldn’t a tackled it and aint’t agoing to no more. But I reckon I got to light out for the Territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally she’s going to adopt me and sivilize me and I can’t stand it. I been there before.

The above quote by the title character is the last paragraph of a book published in the US on 18 February 1885 (it had been published in the UK two months previously).

Who is the author of this work?
- Charles Dickens
- Rudyard Kipling
- Mark Twain
What is the title of the novel? (There is no multiple-choice this time)

The answers will be posted later today.

Peter Pan Helping Children Grow Up—Answer

JM Barrie

…is the writer who created Peter Pan

Background

In April 1929, J. M. Barrie granted the copyright of his Peter Pan works to the hospital, requesting that the income remain undisclosed. This decision allowed the hospital to control the rights and receive royalties from performances, publications, and adaptations of the play and novel. Over the years, numerous performances and adaptations have been produced under the hospital’s license. Additionally, the hospital’s trustees commissioned a sequel, Peter Pan in Scarlet, by Geraldine McCaughrean, which was published in 2006.

After the copyright expired the hospital was granted a perpetual right to collect royalties by the UK government.

Further information can be found at Great Ormond Street Hospital’s website.

Peter Pan Helping Children Grow Up

Peter Pan statue in Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park in the City of Westminster in London, Great Britain.
[Image from Wikipedia]

On February 14, 1852, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, the first in England to offer inpatient beds for children, opened its doors in London.

In 1929, a writer generously donated all his rights to Peter Pan to the hospital, and they continue to receive royalties from the work to this day. Can you name the generous writer?

The answer will be posted later today.

In a Fix—Answer

Firstly: C. Jules Verne

Secondly: Around the World in Eighty Days

Frontispiece: Phileas Fogg. An ilustration from the novel *Around the World in Eighty Days* by Jules Verne painted by Alphonse de Neuville and/or Léon Benett.
[Image from Wikipedia]

Phileas Fogg, a wealthy Englishman, embarks on a journey around the world to win a wager. Along the way, he rescues Aouda from sati (being burned on her late husband’s funeral pyre) and encounters Detective Fix, who believes Fogg is a bank robber. Despite facing numerous challenges and delays, Fogg returns to London just in time to win the wager and marry Aouda.

The three authors were all born on February 8th: Dickens in 1812, Verne in 1828 and Lewis in 1885.

In a Fix

Firstly, one of these authors, born on February 8th, penned a novel which included the characters Aouda, a beautiful Indian woman, and Mr. Fix, a detective. Which author?
A. Charles Dickens
B. Sinclair Lewis
C. Jules Verne

Secondly, what was the title of the novel referred to above? (No multiple-choice this time)

The answers will follow later today.

Alexander Selkirk

Scottish mariner Alexander Selkirk’s extraordinary ordeal as a castaway reached a turning point on 2 February 1709 when he was rescued after four solitary years by English captain Woodes Rogers and his crew aboard the Duke. Selkirk had been stranded on an uninhabited island in the Juan Fernández archipelago, an experience that would later inspire Daniel Defoe’s classic novel Robinson Crusoe. The statue commemorating Selkirk at his original home serves as a reminder of his resilience and the enduring fascination with tales of survival and adventure.