Chapter 12 - Biographical Quiz — Moby-Dick; or, The Whale

What is the name of Queequeg's home island?

• Nantucket
• Rokovoko
• Tahiti
• Kokovoko

What is the social rank of Queequeg's father?

• A merchant trader
• A High Priest
• A High Chief and King
• A ship captain

From which port does the whaling ship that Queequeg boards originate?

• Nantucket
• New Bedford
• Sag Harbor
• Boston

To which historical figure does Melville compare Queequeg?

• Alexander the Great
• Czar Peter the Great
• Napoleon Bonaparte
• Christopher Columbus

What does Queequeg conclude about Christians after living among them?

• They are morally superior to his people
• They are both miserable and wicked, worse than his father's heathens
• They are generous and kind
• They are indifferent to outsiders

What has replaced Queequeg's royal scepter?

• A whaling lance
• A cutlass
• A barbed harpoon iron
• A ship's wheel

Why does Queequeg say he cannot yet return to his throne?

• His father is still alive and ruling
• Christianity has unfitted him for ascending the pure pagan throne
• He has been banished by his people
• He lacks the money for passage home

What famous aphorism does Melville include about Rokovoko?

• "All places are home to the wanderer"
• "It is not down on any map; true places never are"
• "No island is truly an island"
• "The sea knows all our secrets"

Queequeg capsized his own canoe when boarding the whaling ship.

The ship's captain immediately welcomed Queequeg aboard and gave him the best quarters.

In the sentence "Queequeg disdained no seeming ignominy," what does "ignominy" mean?

• Danger
• Public shame or disgrace
• Physical hardship
• Financial loss

What does "vitiated" mean when Melville writes Queequeg's blood was "sadly vitiated"?

• Strengthened
• Purified
• Impaired or corrupted
• Celebrated

When Melville says Queequeg was "actuated by a profound desire," what does "actuated" mean?

• Prevented
• Confused
• Motivated or driven to act
• Frightened