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William Hague wrote a biography of William Wilberforce.

Genre - Biographies

Biographies tell the stories of real lives, from quiet thinkers to famous leaders. This quiz tests how you understand the features and purpose of biography writing.

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Fascinating Fact:

Biographers often use techniques such as vivid description and carefully selected detail. These choices shape how readers view the subject’s character and motivations.

In Specialist Books, biographies explore real lives in depth. You are expected to analyse how writers select, arrange, and comment on events to create a convincing life story.

Key Terms

Biography: A factual account of a person’s life written by someone else, usually in the third person.
Autobiography: A life story written by the person it is about, using the first person “I”.
Narrative voice: The perspective and tone a writer uses to tell the story of someone’s life.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What is the main purpose of a biography?

The main purpose of a biography is to inform readers about a real person’s life and significance, explaining their experiences, choices, and impact on other people or events.

How is a biography different from an autobiography?

A biography is written by someone other than the subject, usually in the third person, while an autobiography is written by the subject and uses “I” to tell their own story.

What techniques make a biography engaging to read?

A biography is engaging when it uses clear structure, carefully chosen detail, occasional dialogue, and thoughtful commentary to show why the subject’s life matters to readers.

Try These Related Quizzes

1 .

Former Conservative Party leader William Hague wrote a 2002 biography of which Prime Minister?

William Pitt the Elder

William Pitt the Younger

David Lloyd George

Margaret Thatcher

He also wrote a biography of William Wilberforce, the independent politician and campaigner in the movement to abolish the slave trade

2 .

The US writer Marshall Terrill wrote a 1993 biography subtitled Portrait of an American Rebel, about which Hollywood star?

Marlon Brando

Kirk Douglas

Charlton Heston

Steve McQueen

Terrill also wrote a biography of Elvis Presley

3 .

The British writer Lady Antonia Fraser wrote a 2001 biography subtitled The Journey, about which historical character?

Boadicea

Anne Boleyn

Marie Antoinette

Mary Queen of Scots

As well as biographies, of which she has done many, Lady Antonia also writes historical fiction and the Jemima Shore crime novels

4 .

The Dictionary of National Biography was published in 2004, in 60 volumes and also online, by which university?

Cambridge

Harvard

Oxford

Yale

The book contains the biographies of 59,665 men and women who have shaped British history, from the time of the Romans to the present day

5 .

In 1968 Hunter Davies published a biography of which pop group?

The Beach Boys

The Beatles

The Eagles

The Rolling Stones

He sat in on several of the Sergeant Pepper recording sessions

6 .

James Boswell wrote a famous 1791 biography of which famous figure?

Daniel Defoe

Samuel Johnson

Isaac Newton

Samuel Pepys

As well as being a biographer, Boswell also wrote poetry, essays and accounts of his travels

7 .

Which folk singer was the subject of Marc Eliot's 1979 biography Death of a Rebel?

Woody Guthrie

Cisco Houston

Lead Belly

Phil Ochs

Ochs, a contemporary of Bob Dylan, hanged himself in 1976

8 .

Jonathan Bate wrote a 2003 biography of which poet?

John Clare

Philip Larkin

Alfred, Lord Tennyson

William Wordsworth

Most of Bate's books have been about the works of William Shakespeare

9 .

Who was the subject of Pamela Stephenson's 2002 biography Billy?

Billy Bragg

Billy Connolly

Billy Crystal

Billy Joel

They were married in 1989

10 .

The biographer Lady Antonia Fraser married which playwright in 1980?

Alan Ayckbourn

Robert Bolt

Harold Pinter

Tom Stoppard

The pair had been having an affair since 1975 when both were already married. Fraser divorced her first husband in 1977 and Pinter divorced his wife in 1980, allowing their own marriage to take place

Author: Tony Rennick (Art and Literature Critic)