The Overstory Quizzes

The Overstory Quiz 1

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

Patricia

Olivia

Mimi
2 What tree does Jorgen Hoel plant on his farm?
An aspen

A mulberry

A chestnut

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

letters

photography

diary entries
4 Nicholas Hoel is a/an
artist

activist

engineer

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

poem

necklace

photograph
6 Why does Mimi's father commit suicide?
He has lost his job

He is distressed over the dying tree

His wife has died

He cannot invent the device he wants to
7 As a child Adam is all of the following except
interested in trees and insects

fond of his maple tree

a little "socially retarded"

beloved by his parents and siblings
8 Adam goes to college to study
botany

psychology

economics

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

Constitutional

Intellectual Property

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

has a breakdown

is a vicious guard

keeps his cool
12 During the Vietnam War, all of the following happen to Douglas except
he relishes killing the Viet Cong

he flies planes

he wants to stay in Thailand

he is saved by a banyan tree
13 After the war, Douglas takes a job
planting seedlings

in politics

as a scientist

for a logging company
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?
Push him out

Save him

Talk to him

Sing to him
16 Neelay grows famous for designing
websites

games

applications

AIs
17 What literary work is so influential to Patricia?
The Metamorphoses

The Aneid

The Iliad

The Odyssey
18 All of the following are true about Patricia's time in college except
she determines which gases the trees breathe out

she believes that trees are social creatures

her professors say old growth is bad

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

She loses her lectureship

It is criticized by leading dendrologists

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 faded into oblivion

It has been semi-validated
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
tell her she has a purpose

tell her to write about them

move her to tears of joy

guide her to Solace
24 Why is Dorothy so depressed in her marriage?
She cannot have a child

Ray is cheating on her

She is not a good actress

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

Nick

Mimi

Douglas

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