The Autobiography of Red Quizzes

The Autobiography of Red Quiz 1

1 What color does Herakles dream of Geryon being, proving he doesn’t know Geryon at all?
Blue

Green

Red

Yellow
2 Whose emotional failure does the empty fruit bowl signify?
Geryon's mother

Geryon

Herakles

Geryon's brother
3 Which artistic medium was not a mode of expression for Geryon’s autobiography?
Photography

Sculpture

Writing

Oil Painting
4 What is the “theme” of Geryon’s street art in Herakles’ words?
Fear

Flight

Captivity

Eros
5 What is Herakles’ hometown?
Hades

Buenos Aires

Miami

Lima
6 What is the main topic of conversation between the philosopher Lazer and Geryon?
Religion

Distance

Deconstructionism

Truth
7 Which poet’s work is not influential for Autobiography of Red?
Stesichoros

Gertrude Stein

Sappho

Emily Dickinson
8 Which transition does Geryon try to capture in his photograph “If He Sleep He Shall Do Well”?
Uncertainty to Certainty

Life to Death

Fear to Wonder

Innocence to Cynicism
9 What is Geryon’s favorite question?
What is time made of?

What is freedom?

What do I think?

Why did Herakles kill Geryon?
10 What is a palinode?
A preface or introduction

A paradox

A “counter song”: saying the opposite of what you said before

A meaningless platitude
11 What does proemium mean?
Preface or introduction

Premium or high-quality

Process

Premiere or first time
12 At what age does Geryon fall in love with Herakles, and at what age do they encounter each other again in Buenos Aires?
14; 28

18; 22

12; 20

14; 22
13 Who or what does Herakles attempt to liberate in Buenos Aires?
Ancash

Geryon

Himself

A painted carousel tiger
14 What best describes Herakles’ attitude towards Geryon’s emotionality during sex?
Gentle; understanding

Dismissive; frustrated

Angry; prideful

Generous; loving
15 What is Herakles and Geryon’s song?
Tempo

Blue

La Cumparsita

Joy to the World
16 What is Herakles and Ancash’s documentary ostensibly about?
Soundscapes

Seismic activity

South American volcanoes

Emily Dickinson
17 What is the meaning of “Mitwelt” in “Café Mitwelt,” where Geryon writes postcards from Buenos Aires with scraps of Heidegger on them?
A German term for human existence

A German term for an individual's social or cultural environment

Faithless

Mocha
18 Which answer to the question “What is time made of?” does the yellowbeard NOT give Geryon?
The fourth dimension of reality, where the other three dimensions are spatial

It is an abstraction

It is a meaning that we impose upon motion

Nothing
19 What is Ancash’s answer when Geryon asks him what his name means?
eagle

He doesn’t have a chance to answer

light, of little weight

blue
20 What is the image of “a poppy in a breeze” NOT associated with in Autobiography of Red?
Blood

Desire

Sex

Death
21 Which is NOT an assumption we can make from the detail that Geryon is packing “six boxes of DX 100 color film” for his trip to Buenos Aires?
Digital photography hasn’t been invented yet

Color is an indispensable part of how Geryon sees the world

He is motivated by a desire for self-expression

He expects to be taking all of his photos outside
22 Which color is repeatedly associated with Herakles in Geryon’s perception?
Blue

Black

Red

Gold
23 Who is the “incubus” in this story, and what are they associated with?
Herakles; sexual frustration

Geryon; his monstrousness

Geryon’s brother; sexual terror and nightmares

Ancash; thwarting Geryon and Herakles’ relationship
24 Which of these conflicting narratives about Stesichoros’ blindness ISN'T offered as a possibility?
Helen blinded him when he liberated her

Helen blinded him because he blasphemed her

He was always a blind man

Hera struck him blind for his impiety
25 Fill in the blank of this oft-quoted sentence about Geryon’s heartbreak: “Geryon’s/whole body formed one arch of a cry—upcast to that custom, the human custom/of ______.”
Loneliness

Mourning

Wrong love

Heartbrokenness

The Autobiography of Red Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for The Autobiography of Red is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Ask Your Own Question

Study Guide for The Autobiography of Red

The Autobiography of Red study guide contains a biography of Anne Carson, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

Read the Study Guide for The Autobiography of Red…

Wikipedia Entries for The Autobiography of Red

Introduction

View Wikipedia Entries for The Autobiography of Red…