Shakespeare's Monsters, Demons, and Giants Quiz

Question: In Troilus and Cressida, Thersites, enslaved to the Greek hero Ajax, says that Ajax is “as full of envy at his greatness as” which monster “is at Proserpina's beauty”?

Answer: In Troilus and Cressida, Thersites says that Ajax is “as full of envy at his greatness as Cerberus is at Proserpina's beauty.” In Greek mythology, Cerberus is a three-headed dog who guards the underworld.

Question: In Macbeth, which magical character chides the witches for taking it upon themselves “to trade and traffic with Macbeth”?

Answer: In Macbeth, Hecate chides the witches for taking it upon themselves “to trade and traffic with Macbeth.” In Greek mythology, Hecate is the chief goddess of magic and spells.

Question: In Macbeth, what is the Scottish nobleman Macduff referring to when he says, “Approach the chamber, and destroy your sight with a new [monster]?”

Answer: In Macbeth, Macduff says, “Approach the chamber, and destroy your sight / With a new gorgon.” Gorgons are monsters described in Greek mythology as winged creatures (one of which is Medusa, a snake-haired monster who can turn viewers to stone).

Question: In Henry V, the king warns citizens of a town he is besieging that, if they resist further, it would be as pointless to tell his soldiers not to pillage as it would be to tell which sea monster “to come ashore?”

Answer: In Henry V, the king says: “We may as bootless spend our vain command / Upon th'enragèd soldiers in their spoil / As send precèpts to the leviathan / to come ashore.” In Jewish mythology, the Leviathan is a sea monster.

Question: In Much Ado About Nothing,” the fraudulent priests of which ancient god does Borachio describe as being depicted "in the old church-window"'?

Answer: In Much Ado About Nothing, Borachio, a henchman of the villain Don John, says, “What a deformed thief this fashion is,…like god Bel’s priests in the old church-window.” Bel, also called Marduk, was the national god of ancient Babylonia.

Question: In A Midsummer’s Night Dream, what does a passing fairy call Puck, the fairy king Oberon’s mischievous servant?

Answer: In A Midsummer’s Night Dream, a fairy calls Puck, the fairy king Oberon’s mischievous servant, a “hobgoblin.” In medieval English folklore, a hobgoblin is a common term for a malicious fairy or demon.

Question: In Julius Caesar, Artemidorus says, “If thou read this, O Caesar, thou mayest live; / If not," which goddesses "with traitors do contrive”?

Answer: In Julius Caesar, Artemidorus says, “If thou read this, O Caesar, thou mayest live; / If not, the Fates with traitors do contrive.” In Greek and Roman mythology, the Fates were three goddesses who determined human destinies.

Question: Which companion of one of the Weird Sisters in Macbeth takes the form of a cat?

Answer: In Macbeth, Graymalkin is the feline familiar of one of the Weird Sisters.

Question: In Henry VI, Part One, which monsters are said to “lurk” in a labyrinth among “ugly treasons?”

Answer: In Henry VI, Part One, the scheming nobleman Suffolk says to himself: “Thou mayst not wander in that labyrinth; / There Minotaurs and ugly treasons lurk.” In Greek mythology, the Minotaur is a monster with the body of a man and the head of a bull.

Question: In The Tempest, what witch is described in the lines “This blue-eyed hag was hither brought with child / And here was left by th’ sailors”?

Answer: In The Tempest, Sycorax is described in the lines “This blue-eyed hag was hither brought with child / And here was left by th’ sailors.” In the play, Sycorax is the mother of the villain Caliban.

Question: What is Joan of Arc summoning in Henry VI when she says, “Now, ye familiar spirits, that are cull'd / Out of the powerful regions under earth, / Help me this once, that France may get the field”?

Answer: Joan of Arc summons creatures called Fiends in Henry VI, saying, “Now, ye familiar spirits, that are cull'd / Out of the powerful regions under earth, / Help me this once, that France may get the field.”

Question: In Henry IV, the Earl of Douglas says that kings grow like which monster’s heads?

Answer: In Henry IV, the Earl of Douglas, leader of Scottish rebels against Henry IV, says, “Another king! They grow like Hydra’s heads.” In Greek legend, the Hydra is a nine-headed monster that can grow two new heads for every one that is cut off.

Question: In Henry VI, Richard, Duke of York, says, “See, how the ugly witch doth bend her brows, / As if, with” which sorceress “she would change my shape”?  

Answer: In Henry VI, Richard, Duke of York, says, “See, how the ugly witch doth bend her brows, / As if, with Circe, she would change my shape!" In Greek legend, Circe is a sorceress who changes men into animals.