Can You Guess The Novel Based On Its Protagonist? Take This Quiz And Find Out!

Only True Literature Scholars Can Match These Protagonists With Their Novels

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In a work of literature, the protagonist is the character that events tend to circulate around, such as The Bell Jar‘s Esther Greenwood or The Scarlet Letter‘s Hester Prynne.

Typically, a reader will empathize with the protagonist and cheer for either their success or failure in the novel’s outcome. How well do you know your literature? Are you able to match a title with its main protagonist and vice versa? Check your knowledge with this quiz, and good luck!

Who is the protagonist in the Civil War epic Gone with the Wind?

Retry Correct Incorrect Scarlett O’Hara is the protagonist in the classic 1936 novel Gone with the Wind. The civil war epic follows the story of O’Hara as she gets swept up in a whirlwind romance with a married man.

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Who is the protagonist in the Civil War epic Gone with the Wind?

Melanie Hamilton
Natasha Romanoff
Scarlett O’Hara
Leslie Howard

The Catcher in the Rye has an angsty teenager as the protagonist. What’s his name?

Retry Correct Incorrect In the 1945 novel, The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is an angsty rebellious teenager. J. D. Salinger’s protagonist is said to be one of the most important characters in all of 20th-century American literature.

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The Catcher in the Rye has an angsty teenager as the protagonist. What’s his name?

Cedric Diggory
Dean Moriarty
Winston Smith
Holden Caulfield

Captain Ahab is the main protagonist in which classic tale?

Captain Ahab is the main protagonist in which classic novel?

Retry Correct Incorrect Although a lot of people think of Ishmael in the role, Captain Ahab is the main protagonist in the classic 1851 novel Moby-Dick, by Herman Melville. The story follows the Captain as he sets sail on the whaling boat Pequod on a revenge mission to find the infamous whale that bit off his leg.

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Captain Ahab is the main protagonist in which classic tale?

Scarlet Letter
Gone With the Wind
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Moby-Dick

In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, who is the protagonist?

Retry Correct Incorrect In the classic novel to Kill a Mockingbird, the protagonist is the young Scout Finch. Although not all of the events happen directly to Scout, the novel’s events do take place around her and shape the narrative she tells.

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In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, who is the protagonist?

Harry Potter
Holden Caulfield
Hester Prynne
Scout Finch

Charles Dickens’ novel Great Expectations follows which character as he goes from childhood into adulthood?

Retry Correct Incorrect Charles Dickens’ great English novel Great Expectations follows the educational journey of an orphan named Philip Pirrip, nicknamed Pip. The novel is known for its extreme use of imagery and popular characters.

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Charles Dickens’ novel Great Expectations follows which character as he goes from childhood into adulthood?

Joe Gargery
Philip Pirrip
Gregory Walsh
John Green

Katniss Everdeen lives in the nation of Panem. This fictional place and protagonist are from which novel?

Retry Correct Incorrect The fictional character Katniss Everdeen participated in Panem’s annual Hunger Games competition in The Hunger Games. Suzanne Collins’ 2008 novel became an instant hit for YA readers who wanted to follow the “Mockingjay” and her journey to take down The Capitol.

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Katniss Everdeen lives in the nation of Panem. This fictional place and protagonist are from which novel?

Looking for Alaska
Legend
Divergent
The Hunger Games

The Lord of the Rings follows the stories of various characters, but what is the name of the main protagonist?

Retry Correct Incorrect Although J.R.R Tolkien’s fantasy epic Lord of the Rings follows the stories of many different characters, the main protagonist is Frodo Baggins. Come on, no one else could handle the power of the ring except the hobbit. So he’s definitely the “main” character.

New Line Cinema

The Lord of the Rings follows the stories of various characters, but what is the name of the main protagonist?

Bilbo Baggins
Frodo Baggins
Gandalf
Samwise Gamgee

Sylvia Plath’s novel The Bell Jar follows the story of a mentally ill protagonist. What is her name?

Retry Correct Incorrect Sylvia Plath was a poet and wrote one novel during her career, The Bell Jar. The novel’s protagonist, Esther Greenwood, is meant to be a reflection of Plath’s struggle with depression and bipolar disorder.

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Sylvia Plath’s novel The Bell Jar follows the story of a mentally ill protagonist. What is her name?

Betsy Wormwood
Helga Potts
Esther Greenwood
Beth Baratte

Who regarded as an archetype for a tortured anti-hero in Emily Brontë’s novel Wuthering Heights?

Retry Correct Incorrect In Emily Brontë’s novel Wuthering Heights, the protagonist, Heathcliff, is an archetype for a tortured and jealous antihero. That said, he is also a romantic hero in a lot of readers’ eyes because of his relationship with Catherine Earnshaw.

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Who regarded as an archetype for a tortured anti-hero in Emily Brontë’s novel Wuthering Heights?

Catherine Earnshaw
Edward Rochester
Heathcliff
Lockwood

In the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, who is the main protagonist?

Retry Correct Incorrect Ken Kesey’s novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest follows the interesting story of Randle Patrick “Mac” McMurphy. He pleads insanity, so he doesn’t have to go to prison but rather a psychiatric ward.

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In the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, who is the main protagonist?

John Nash
Doctor Nolan
The Chief
Randle Patrick McMurphy

George and Lennie are the two protagonists in which American classic?

Retry Correct Incorrect John Steinbeck’s novella Of Mice and Men follows two protagonists, George, and Lennie, as they travel across California in search of work during the Great Depression. Due to some of the novella’s themes, Of Mice and Men is one of the most challenged books of the 21st century.

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George and Lennie are the two protagonists in which American classic?

Of Mice and Men
1984
Animal Farm
Dracula

What is the name of the protagonist who doesn’t fall into one of the five factions in the futuristic world of Divergent?

Retry Correct Incorrect Divergent follows the story of protagonist Beatrice “Tris” Prior as she finds out she is divergent and doesn’t fit into one of the five factions that makes up the novel’s futuristic world.

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What is the name of the protagonist who doesn’t fall into one of the five factions in the futuristic world of Divergent?

Beatrice Prior
Celeste Woodley
Prim Everdeen
Arwen

Hester Prynne is condemned by her Puritan neighbors in which novel?

Retry Correct Incorrect Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter follows the story of Hester Prynne, a Puritan woman who is condemned by her neighbors and is forced to wear a scarlet “A” on her dress. In American literature, she is considered to be one of the first important female protagonists.

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Hester Prynne is condemned by her Puritan neighbors in which novel?

The Scarlet Letter
Easy A
Romeo and Juliet
The House of Usher

What is the name of the protagonist in the American classic Fahrenheit 451?

Retry Correct Incorrect Ray Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451 takes place in a dystopian society. It follows the story of Guy Montag, a fireman who realizes he shouldn’t be setting fire to literature but preserving knowledge instead.

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What is the name of the protagonist in the American classic Fahrenheit 451?

Big Brother
Guy Montag
Winston Smith
Old Major

Jurgis Rudkus represents The American Dream in which novel?

Retry Correct Incorrect Upton Sinclair’s novel The Jungle follows the story of Jurgis Rudkus, a man who represents “The American Dream.” The novel explores the harsh conditions immigrants lived in while working in industrialized cities in America, all for the sake of a brighter future.

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Jurgis Rudkus represents The American Dream in which novel?

Catch-22
Animal Farm
The Jungle
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

Bigger Thomas finds himself in a bit of a pickle in which novel?

Retry Correct Incorrect Bigger Thomas, a young African-American man in Chicago, finds himself in a bit of trouble after he accidentally causes the death of his white employer’s daughter. Some critics have dismissed the character as a stereotype.

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Bigger Thomas finds himself in a bit of a pickle in which novel?

Gravity’s Rainbow
As I Lay Dying
Native Son
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

Isabel Archer is the protagonist in which Henry James novel?

Isabel James is the protagonist in which Henry James novel?

Retry Correct Incorrect Henry James’ protagonist for his novel The Portrait of a Lady is Isabel Archer. The story follows the penniless American character as she travels to Europe in search of a new cultural experience.

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Isabel Archer is the protagonist in which Henry James novel?

Daisy Miller
The Turn of the Screw
The Portrait of a Lady
The Wings of the Dove

Which novel follows the story of Bernard Marx, a high-class man with an inferiority complex?

Industrial landscape with farmland in the foreground

Retry Correct Incorrect Bernard Marx is the protagonist with an inferiority complex in Aldous Huxley’s dystopian novel Brave New World. The futuristic novel dives into the concept of technological advancements, such as sleep learning.

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Which novel follows the story of Bernard Marx, a high-class man with an inferiority complex?

Brave New World
Slaughterhouse Five
On the Road
Invisible Man

Tom Joad is the protagonist in which John Steinbeck novel?

Retry Correct Incorrect Tom Joad is the protagonist in John Steinbeck’s famous novel The Grapes of Wrath. The novel follows Joad and his family as they trek across the United States with other “Oakies” during the Great Depression in search of farming jobs in California.

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Tom Joad is the protagonist in which John Steinbeck novel?

Cannery Way
East of Eden
The Pearl
The Grapes of Wrath

Which novel follows the story of Winston Smith?

Retry Correct Incorrect Winston Smith is the protagonist in George Orwell’s famous novel 1984. The story follows Smith in a dystopian future where Big Brother is always watching over the citizens of the fictional nation of Oceania.

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Which novel follows the story of Winston Smith?

Grapes of Wrath
1984
Catch-22
Animal Farm

Congrats, you finished! Here are your results:

Retry A novel expert you are not These results tell us that you didn’t really pay attention too much during high school English class. Also, we’d bet that you’re not a “read for fun” type of person. That’s fine; if you’re okay with getting a low quiz score! Reading isn’t really your thing These results tell us that you might have paid attention in English class, but classic American literature and YA novels are not what you would call “a bit of light reading.” Considering you probably haven’t thought of these books since high school, you should take pride in your score! You’re an avid reader These results tell us that you either have fantastic long-term memory or you enjoy reading up on various genres. If it’s the latter, good for you! It’s always a good idea to brush up on some of the classics with a dash of fantasy in there. You’re a regular scholar. These results tell us that you are a regular scholar when it comes to literature. There’s no way you would ever mix up the protagonists of To Kill a Mockingbird and The Grapes of Wrath. It’s probably because you have piles of books in each corner of your house!

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