Chapter 99 - The Doubloon Quiz — Moby-Dick; or, The Whale

by Herman Melville

Comprehension Quiz: Chapter 99 - The Doubloon

What country minted the gold doubloon nailed to the Pequod’s mainmast?

  • Spain
  • Peru
  • Ecuador
  • Bolivia

What three images sit atop the three Andean peaks depicted on the doubloon?

  • A cross, a shield, and an eagle
  • A flame, a tower, and a crowing cock
  • A sun, a moon, and a star
  • A palm tree, an alpaca, and a volcano

Which zodiac sign is the sun entering on the doubloon?

  • Aries
  • Leo
  • Libra
  • Pisces

What does Ahab say the round gold coin mirrors back?

  • The face of God
  • The White Whale
  • Each man’s own mysterious self
  • The fate of the Pequod

What religious symbol does Starbuck see in the three peaks of the doubloon?

  • The Garden of Eden
  • The Holy Trinity
  • The three crosses of Calvary
  • The three wise men

What reference book does Stubb consult to interpret the doubloon’s zodiac?

  • The Bible
  • A Massachusetts almanac
  • Bowditch’s Navigator
  • Euclid’s Elements

How much does Flask calculate the doubloon is worth in cigars?

  • Six hundred and forty cigars
  • Eight hundred cigars
  • Nine hundred and sixty cigars
  • One thousand cigars

What does Queequeg do when he examines the doubloon?

  • He tries to pry it off the mast
  • He compares its symbols to his tattoos
  • He bows before it in worship
  • He conjugates a verb

What phrase does Pip repeat when examining the doubloon?

  • "From storm to storm! So be it, then."
  • "I look, you look, he looks; we look, ye look, they look."
  • "The ship’s navel, this doubloon here."
  • "God goes ’mong the worlds blackberrying."

What does Pip call the doubloon nailed to the mast?

  • The White Whale’s talisman
  • The ship’s navel
  • The devil’s gold
  • The sun’s mirror

What biblical reference does Starbuck make about Ahab’s reading of the coin?

  • Moses and the burning bush
  • Belshazzar’s writing on the wall
  • Solomon’s temple
  • The Tower of Babel

Why has no sailor stolen the doubloon despite it being unguarded?

  • It is locked in a glass case
  • Ahab watches it day and night
  • The mariners revere it as the White Whale’s talisman
  • It is bolted too firmly to remove

What does Fedallah do when he approaches the doubloon?

  • He reads the zodiac aloud
  • He tries to calculate its value
  • He makes a sign to the sun and bows
  • He shakes his head and walks away

Who provides a running commentary on the other characters’ interpretations of the doubloon?

  • Ishmael
  • Stubb
  • Starbuck
  • Pip

What central theme does Chapter 99 most directly illustrate?

  • The corrupting power of wealth
  • The subjectivity of human perception
  • The conflict between science and religion
  • The inevitability of death at sea

Comprehension Quiz

Question 1 of 0
Score: 0 / 0
Read Chapter
← Previous Next →