The Overstory Quizzes

The Overstory Quiz 1

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

Patricia

Dorothy

Mimi

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

A mulberry

A maple

An aspen

A chestnut
3 The Hoel tree is captured via ___________ for more than a century.

letters

diary entries

drawing

photography
4 Nicholas Hoel is a/an

artist

engineer

lawyer

activist
5 Ma Sih Hsuin brings a precious ________ to America.

necklace

poem

scroll

photograph
6 Why does Mimi's father commit suicide?

He has lost his job

His wife has died

He is distressed over the dying tree

He cannot invent the device he wants to
7 As a child Adam is all of the following except

a little "socially retarded"

beloved by his parents and siblings

fond of his maple tree

interested in trees and insects
8 Adam goes to college to study

botany

psychology

economics

engineering
9 What kind of lawyer is Ray Brinkman?

Corporate

Personal Injury

Intellectual Property

Constitutional
10 Ray and Dorothy's first date leads them into

acting

sports

painting

new jobs
11 In the Stanford Prison Experiment, Douglas

asks to leave

is a vicious guard

has a breakdown

keeps his cool
12 During the Vietnam War, all of the following happen to Douglas except

he is saved by a banyan tree

he relishes killing the Viet Cong

he wants to stay in Thailand

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

for a logging company

in politics

planting seedlings

as a scientist
14 Why does Neelay get so angry at Ms. Gilpin?

She used a racial slur

She takes his notebook

She insults him

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

Save him

Push him out

Sing to him

Talk to him
16 Neelay grows famous for designing

applications

games

websites

AIs
17 What literary work is so influential to Patricia?

The Metamorphoses

The Iliad

The Odyssey

The Aneid
18 All of the following are true about Patricia's time in college except

she believes that trees are social creatures

her professors say old growth is bad

she determines which gases the trees breathe out

she drops out to pursue her own studies
19 What happens after Patricia's paper is published?

It is criticized by leading dendrologists

She loses her lectureship

It is initially lauded

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 been harshly criticized

It has been semi-validated

It has faded into oblivion
22 When Olivia gets high, she

connects with humanity

accidentally dies

commits suicide

talks to the trees
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

guide her to Solace

tell her to write about them
24 Why is Dorothy so depressed in her marriage?

She is not a good actress

She cannot have a child

Ray is cheating on her

They are poor
25 Who does Olivia meet on her initial westward drive?

Douglas

Nick

Patricia

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