Columbia Granger's World of Poetry - Trivia

Trivia Question for April 13

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 23:05:36 -0400

Question:
Whose epitaph reads, "Don't Try"?

Answer: Charles Bukowski.

Trivia Question for April 12

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 23:05:36 -0400

Question:
Whose epitaph reads, "I am all for the short and merry life"?

Answer: Edward FitzGerald, famous for translating the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam .

Trivia Question for April 11

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 23:05:36 -0400

Question:
What academic experience was shared by the poets John Milton, John Dryden, Oscar Wilde, and Algernon Swinburne?

Answer: Rustication, the British equivalent to being suspended from school in America. The term is literally derived from the idea of being "banished to the countryside."

Trivia Question for April 10

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 23:05:36 -0400

Question:
When was the first volume of Gerard Manley Hopkins's poetry published?

Answer: In 1918, twenty-nine years after his death. Hopkins' poetry was a far cry from the norms of his Victorian contemporaries. Robert Bridges was his champion, and helped his work into print.

Trivia Question for April 9

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 23:05:36 -0400

Question:
When was the first volume of Emily Dickinson's poetry published?

Answer: In 1890, four years after her death. The edition was largely expurgated and edited to fit the poetic conventions of the time. Further editions came closer to her original style; her distinctive dashes were included in the 1955 edition edited by Thomas H. Johnson.