The Narrative Worlds of Epics

Literature · 10 questions

The Narrative Worlds of Epics — ten multiple-choice questions on epic works, characters, traditions, and framing.

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1. In which language was Homer's Iliad written?

   1. Ancient Greek
   2. Latin
   3. Akkadian
   4. Sanskrit
   Show the answer

   A) Ancient Greek

2. The most extensive written copies of the Epic of Gilgamesh are in which language?

   1. Akkadian
   2. Ancient Greek
   3. Sumerian
   4. Old Anatolian Turkish
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   A) Akkadian

3. Which text in the Mahabharata contains teachings on duty (dharma)?

   1. Upanishads
   2. Manusmriti
   3. Ramayana
   4. Bhagavad Gita
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   D) Bhagavad Gita

4. In the poem Beowulf, who is the hero's first major adversary?

   1. Fafnir
   2. Jörmungandr
   3. Grendel
   4. Hydra
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   C) Grendel

5. Who compiled the Finnish epic Kalevala from Finnish oral poetry?

   1. Friedrich von Schiller
   2. Snorri Sturluson
   3. Elias Lönnrot
   4. Alexander Nevsky
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   C) Elias Lönnrot

6. In which language did Ferdowsi write the Shahnameh?

   1. Turkish
   2. Hindi
   3. Arabic
   4. Persian
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   D) Persian

7. Who is the king of the Burgundians in the Nibelungenlied?

   1. Gunther
   2. Hagen
   3. Siegfried
   4. Etzel
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   A) Gunther

8. In the Ramayana, who is Rama's wife?

   1. Draupadi
   2. Sita
   3. Savitri
   4. Kunti
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   B) Sita

9. Which scholar developed the oral-formulaic theory applied to Homeric epics?

   1. Jacques Derrida
   2. Friedrich Nietzsche
   3. Ernest Renan
   4. Milman Parry
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   D) Milman Parry

10. Which historical figure is the protagonist of the Castilian epic Cantar de mio Cid?

    1. Sancho II
    2. Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar
    3. Alfonso VI
    4. Ferdinand III
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    B) Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar