The Overstory Quizzes

The Overstory Quiz 1

1 Who is the woman sitting at the tree at the beginning of the story?
Mimi

Dorothy

Patricia

Olivia
2 What tree does Jorgen Hoel plant on his farm?
A mulberry

A maple

A chestnut

An aspen
3 The Hoel tree is captured via ___________ for more than a century.
drawing

letters

diary entries

photography
4 Nicholas Hoel is a/an
activist

engineer

artist

lawyer
5 Ma Sih Hsuin brings a precious ________ to America.
necklace

scroll

poem

photograph
6 Why does Mimi's father commit suicide?
He cannot invent the device he wants to

He is distressed over the dying tree

He has lost his job

His wife has died
7 As a child Adam is all of the following except
beloved by his parents and siblings

fond of his maple tree

interested in trees and insects

a little "socially retarded"
8 Adam goes to college to study
botany

psychology

engineering

economics
9 What kind of lawyer is Ray Brinkman?
Personal Injury

Intellectual Property

Constitutional

Corporate
10 Ray and Dorothy's first date leads them into
new jobs

sports

painting

acting
11 In the Stanford Prison Experiment, Douglas
asks to leave

keeps his cool

has a breakdown

is a vicious guard
12 During the Vietnam War, all of the following happen to Douglas except
he is saved by a banyan tree

he wants to stay in Thailand

he relishes killing the Viet Cong

he flies planes
13 After the war, Douglas takes a job
in politics

for a logging company

planting seedlings

as a scientist
14 Why does Neelay get so angry at Ms. Gilpin?
She takes his notebook

She insults him

She used a racial slur

She gives him a bad grade
15 What does the oak tree do to Neelay?
Sing to him

Save him

Push him out

Talk to him
16 Neelay grows famous for designing
AIs

websites

games

applications
17 What literary work is so influential to Patricia?
The Odyssey

The Metamorphoses

The Aneid

The Iliad
18 All of the following are true about Patricia's time in college except
she drops out to pursue her own studies

her professors say old growth is bad

she believes that trees are social creatures

she determines which gases the trees breathe out
19 What happens after Patricia's paper is published?
It is initially lauded

It is criticized by leading dendrologists

She loses her lectureship

All of these
20 How does Patricia deal with her losses?
She visits the old growth forests

She gets work with the Bureau of Land Management

She considers suicide

All of these
21 From two researchers in the forest, what does Patricia learn about her work?
It has been validated

It has faded into oblivion

It has been semi-validated

It has been harshly criticized
22 When Olivia gets high, she
accidentally dies

talks to the trees

commits suicide

connects with humanity
23 The beings of light do all the following to/for Olivia except
move her to tears of joy

tell her she has a purpose

tell her to write about them

guide her to Solace
24 Why is Dorothy so depressed in her marriage?
Ray is cheating on her

She is not a good actress

They are poor

She cannot have a child
25 Who does Olivia meet on her initial westward drive?
Patricia

Nick

Douglas

Mimi

Study Guide for The Overstory

The Overstory study guide contains a biography of Richard Powers, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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The Overstory

by Richard Powers

The Overstory Quiz 1

The Overstory Questions and Answers

Study Guide for The Overstory

Lesson Plan for The Overstory