Logo

Books Quiz - Author - Thomas Hardy (Questions)

Thomas Hardy was born in Dorset in 1840, the son of a stonemason. After leaving school at 16 Hardy became an apprentice architect and he moved to London where he won awards from the Royal Institute of British Architects. His first love though was writing and he returned home to pursue a literary career.

In his 60+ year career Hardy wrote 15 novels, most notably Far From the Madding Crowd, Tess of the d'Urbervilles and Jude the Obscure. He also penned more than 50 short stories and has had 14 volumes of his poetry published. He died in 1928 at the ripe age of 87.

Hardy's work has influenced many younger writers, and without it we might never have heard the voices of D. H. Lawrence or Virginia Woolf. See how well you know the man and his works by playing this quiz.

1. Hardy was born in 1840 in which English county?
[ ] Cornwall
[ ] Devon
[ ] Dorset
[ ] Somerset
2. In The Mayor of Casterbridge, Michael Henchard sells his wife and baby daughter for how much?
[ ] Five pounds
[ ] Five guineas
[ ] Ten pounds
[ ] Ten guineas
3. What was Hardy's father's profession?
[ ] Clergyman
[ ] Farmer
[ ] Solicitor
[ ] Stonemason
4. What was the title of Hardy's first volume of poetry, published in 1898?
[ ] Essex Poems
[ ] Middlesex Poems
[ ] Sussex Poems
[ ] Wessex Poems
5. In Jude the Obscure, what is Jude's surname?
[ ] Crawley
[ ] Fawley
[ ] Hawley
[ ] Sawley
6. Who played Bathsheba Everdene in the 1967 film version of Far from the Madding Crowd?
[ ] Julie Andrews
[ ] Julie Christie
[ ] Joan Collins
[ ] Elizabeth Taylor
7. What is the name of the feeble-minded young man in Under the Greenwood Tree?
[ ] Thomas Leaf
[ ] Thomas Tree
[ ] Thomas Twigg
[ ] Thomas Wood
8. In Tess of the d'Urbervilles, what name does Tess give to her illegitimate son?
[ ] Shadow
[ ] Sorrow
[ ] Sparrow
[ ] Storm
9. The Return of the Native begins when?
[ ] Halloween
[ ] Guy Fawkes Night
[ ] Christmas Eve
[ ] New Year's Eve
10. Before moving to London in 1862, Hardy trained as what?
[ ] An architect
[ ] A blacksmith
[ ] A printer
[ ] A sheep shearer

 

Logo
Books Quiz - Author - Thomas Hardy (Answers)
1. Hardy was born in 1840 in which English county?
[ ] Cornwall
[ ] Devon
[x] Dorset
[ ] Somerset
He was born in Stinsford, just outside Dorchester
2. In The Mayor of Casterbridge, Michael Henchard sells his wife and baby daughter for how much?
[ ] Five pounds
[x] Five guineas
[ ] Ten pounds
[ ] Ten guineas
The Mayor of Casterbridge has the subtitle, The Life and Death of a Man of Character
3. What was Hardy's father's profession?
[ ] Clergyman
[ ] Farmer
[ ] Solicitor
[x] Stonemason
His father was also called Thomas Hardy
4. What was the title of Hardy's first volume of poetry, published in 1898?
[ ] Essex Poems
[ ] Middlesex Poems
[ ] Sussex Poems
[x] Wessex Poems
He set most of his work in the semi-fictional county of Wessex
5. In Jude the Obscure, what is Jude's surname?
[ ] Crawley
[x] Fawley
[ ] Hawley
[ ] Sawley
Jude the Obscure was the last of Hardy's published novels
6. Who played Bathsheba Everdene in the 1967 film version of Far from the Madding Crowd?
[ ] Julie Andrews
[x] Julie Christie
[ ] Joan Collins
[ ] Elizabeth Taylor
Her 3 suitors were played by Alan Bates, Peter Finch and Terence Stamp
7. What is the name of the feeble-minded young man in Under the Greenwood Tree?
[x] Thomas Leaf
[ ] Thomas Tree
[ ] Thomas Twigg
[ ] Thomas Wood
Like everyone else, he is smitten by the schoolteacher Fancy Day
8. In Tess of the d'Urbervilles, what name does Tess give to her illegitimate son?
[ ] Shadow
[x] Sorrow
[ ] Sparrow
[ ] Storm
The full title of Tess of the d'Urbervilles is Tess of the d'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman Faithfully Presented
9. The Return of the Native begins when?
[ ] Halloween
[x] Guy Fawkes Night
[ ] Christmas Eve
[ ] New Year's Eve
The novel has some controversial themes and was regarded by many in Victorian society as sensationalist
10. Before moving to London in 1862, Hardy trained as what?
[x] An architect
[ ] A blacksmith
[ ] A printer
[ ] A sheep shearer
Hardy won awards from both the Royal Institute of British Architects and the Architectural Association and he was tasked with excavating the graveyard of St Pancras Old Church ready for the new St Pancras train station