Laurence Sterne Practice Questions
20 free Laurence Sterne practice questions for the English Literature. Tap an option to answer — you get instant feedback, the correct answer, and a detailed explanation for every question.
In 'Tristram Shandy', Tristram's father, Walter Shandy, holds an elaborate, deterministic theory about what physical feature of a child, which is tragically crushed during Tristram's birth by Dr. Slop's forceps?
- A The shape of the left foot
- B The bridge of the nose
- C The symmetry of the skull
- D The length of the right thumb
Correct answer: The bridge of the nose
Walter Shandy firmly believes that a large, prominent nose is essential for individual genius and worldly success because it provides ample space for the vital spirits to operate. When Dr. Slop uses his newly invented forceps during Tristram's difficult delivery, he accidentally crushes the infant's nose. This disaster serves as a classic example of Walter's grand intellectual theories being ruined by unpredictable material reality.
Laurence Sterne famously leaves Volume VI, Chapters 18 and 19 entirely blank in 'Tristram Shandy'. What is the narrative function or reasoning behind this experimental technique?
- A The 18th-century printer omitted the pages due to a paper shortage.
- B Sterne invites readers to imagine Widow Wadman's beauty before giving his own version later.
- C The narrator claims he forgot his own train of thought and needed to pause to drink tea.
- D It represents a moment where Uncle Toby falls completely silent in contemplation of war.
Correct answer: Sterne invites readers to imagine Widow Wadman's beauty before giving his own version later.
Sterne intentionally leaves the chapters blank to toy with reader expectations and narrative control. He explicitly tells the reader to paint the portrait of Widow Wadman using their own ideal of beauty, making the text uniquely collaborative. He later inserts the missing chapters out of chronological order in Chapter 20, keeping the structure deliberately fragmented.
What philosophical concept from John Locke's 'An Essay Concerning Human Understanding' serves as the primary structural and comedic engine for the narrative digressions in 'Tristram Shandy'?
- A The Tabula Rasa (the mind as a blank slate)
- B The distinction between primary and secondary qualities
- C The association of ideas (linking ideas by habit)
- D The division of complex and simple ideas
Correct answer: The association of ideas (linking ideas by habit)
Locke's concept of the association of ideas—where the mind connects seemingly unrelated thoughts through chance or habit—explains why Sterne's characters constantly wander off-topic. A single word or sound triggers a massive chain of memories or tangents for Walter or Uncle Toby, replacing linear plotting with a psychological map of how human thoughts actually drift.
Uncle Toby is deeply obsessed with a specific hobbyhorse that consumes all his time and money. What is this obsession, and what event caused it?
- A Naval navigation and mapmaking; a shipwreck off the coast of Ireland
- B Military fortification and sieges; a groin wound sustained at the Siege of Namur
- C The selective breeding of prize stallions; a kick to the ribs from a wild horse
- D The collection of antique church organs; a religious conversion during a sermon
Correct answer: Military fortification and sieges; a groin wound sustained at the Siege of Namur
Toby Shandy was wounded in the groin by a falling stone during the Siege of Namur in 1695. To explain his experience to visitors, he begins building detailed, miniature models of battlefield terrain and fortifications in his bowling green. Supported by Corporal Trim, this massive hobbyhorse allows him to relive military glories in a safe, pastoral environment.
What is the name of Tristram's father's grand literary project, a massive, theoretical treatise on the education of his son that is written so slowly that Tristram outgrows the advice before it is finished?
- A The Tristra-paedia
- B The Shandean Codex
- C The Speculum Mundi
- D The Pedagogical Enchiridion
Correct answer: The Tristra-paedia
Walter Shandy spends years writing the 'Tristra-paedia,' intending it to be a perfect system of education covering everything from health to philosophy. Because he researches and writes at a snail's pace, Tristram grows up faster than his father can finish the chapters. This comic paradox illustrates the futility of trying to map out a chaotic human life using rigid systems.
How does Tristram end up with a name his father completely despises, running contrary to Walter's theories on the magical influence of proper Christian names?
- A The parish priest is drunk and misreads the naming paper.
- B Walter wanted 'Trismegistus,' but Susannah garbles it, so the curate baptizes him Tristram.
- C Tristram's mother signs the registry in secret to spite her husband.
- D Uncle Toby insists on naming the child after his old military general.
Correct answer: Walter wanted 'Trismegistus,' but Susannah garbles it, so the curate baptizes him Tristram.
Walter believes that names possess an occult power over a person's destiny and views 'Tristram' as the most miserable, un-heroic name possible. When the infant is fading and needs a quick baptism, Walter sends Susannah to tell the curate to name him 'Trismegistus' (after the ancient mystic). Susannah panics and drops the syllables, leading the curate to baptize him as Tristram, breaking Walter's heart.
Laurence Sterne's 'A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy' features a narrator who also appears as a prominent, eccentric character in 'Tristram Shandy'. Who is this narrator?
- A Yorick
- B Corporal Trim
- C Dr. Slop
- D Eugenius
Correct answer: Yorick
Yorick, the witty and sensitive parson from 'Tristram Shandy,' serves as the sole narrator of 'A Sentimental Journey.' Sterne used this alter ego to explore a new style of travel writing that focused on emotional encounters and human sympathy rather than standard descriptions of monuments and geography.
In 'Tristram Shandy', the local parson Yorick rides a famously miserable, broken-down horse. Why does he refuse to buy a finer, healthier animal?
- A He believes fine horses are a sin against Christian humility.
- B He wants to avoid neighbors' envy and stop people constantly borrowing a valuable horse.
- C The horse belonged to his dead father, and he is bound by a strict oath.
- D He uses the horse's poor health to experiment with ancient veterinary medicines.
Correct answer: He wants to avoid neighbors' envy and stop people constantly borrowing a valuable horse.
Yorick is a man of sharp wit but deep benevolence who finds that owning an excellent horse leads to endless requests for loans, which ruins the horse anyway. By riding a pathetic, cheap pony, he protects himself from social pressures and tests the sincerity of his companions. This eccentric choice establishes his disregard for worldly status.
What unusual visual feature is printed directly onto a page in Volume I of 'Tristram Shandy' to signify the sudden death and mournful loss of Parson Yorick?
- A A completely black, ink-flooded page
- B A chaotic, hand-drawn maze of lines
- C A detailed woodcut engraving of a weeping willow tree
- D A blank white musical staff with no notes
Correct answer: A completely black, ink-flooded page
Following the announcement of Yorick's death and his final words ('Alas, poor YORICK!'), Sterne inserts a famous, solid black page on both sides. This radical visual device forces the reader to confront a physical space of mourning and silence within the material book itself.
In 'A Sentimental Journey', the narrator Yorick classifies travelers into distinct, satirical categories. Which category does he invent to mock traditional, grumbling travel writers like Tobias Smollett?
- A The Splenetic Traveller
- B The Inquisitionist Traveller
- C The Innocent Traveller
- D The Romantic Traveller
Correct answer: The Splenetic Traveller
Yorick targets Tobias Smollett under the nickname 'Smelfungus' and places him in the category of 'The Splenetic Traveller.' He argues that people like Smollett travel through beautiful landscapes only to complain about the food, beds, and locals, missing out on the genuine emotional connections that travel should provide.
A bizarre domestic accident occurs when young Tristram is five years old, involving a falling sash window. What injury does he sustain due to the maid Susannah's negligence and a lack of a proper chamber pot?
- A He breaks his collarbone while attempting to climb out into the garden.
- B He is accidentally circumcised by the falling window sash while urinating.
- C His right hand is crushed, preventing him from ever learning to paint.
- D His foot is pinned, causing him to walk with a permanent limp like Uncle Toby.
Correct answer: He is accidentally circumcised by the falling window sash while urinating.
Because Corporal Trim had removed the lead weights from the sash windows to melt them down into miniature cannons for Toby's bowling green, the window frame is unstable. When Tristram is forced to urinate out the window because the chamber pot is missing, the sash falls, resulting in an accidental, frightening circumcision. The event triggers another wave of philosophical panic from Walter.
What is the name of Uncle Toby's fiercely loyal servant, an old, compassionate soldier who helps him operate his elaborate mock battlefields?
- A Corporal Trim
- B Obadiah
- C Le Fever
- D Lieutenant Tom
Correct answer: Corporal Trim
Corporal Trim is Uncle Toby's faithful servant and literal partner in crime on the bowling green. Like Toby, he was wounded in battle, and he shares Toby's absolute devotion to military history and kindhearted charity, acting as the practical executioner of Toby's eccentric plans.
In Volume III of 'Tristram Shandy', Sterne includes a long, absurd document written in Latin and English regarding a historic church excommunication. Whose curse is this, read aloud by Dr. Slop?
- A The Excommunication of Ernulphus
- B The Anathema of Saint Augustine
- C The Papal Bull of Pope Clement
- D The Decree of the Sorbonne
Correct answer: The Excommunication of Ernulphus
Dr. Slop reads aloud the Curse of Ernulphus, a real medieval document filled with incredibly specific, exhaustive curses targeting every individual limb and bodily function of a sinner. Walter Shandy utilizes this text to show how excessive and ridiculous institutional rules can be, contrasting it with Toby's simple, gentle nature.
When Uncle Toby catches a persistent, annoying fly that has buzzed around his face for hours, what does he do with it that perfectly highlights his pure sentimentality?
- A He crushes it instantly and uses it to illustrate the brevity of human life to Walter.
- B He carries it to the window, frees it, saying the world has room for both.
- C He feeds it to an old spider he keeps in a glass jar on his desk.
- D He preserves it in wax to use as a token on his miniature battlefield maps.
Correct answer: He carries it to the window, frees it, saying the world has room for both.
Uncle Toby refuses to harm the fly, stating, 'I'll not hurt thee... This world surely is wide enough to hold both thee and me.' This small, tender action is celebrated by the narrator as the ultimate expression of Toby's universal benevolence, helping define the 18th-century cult of sensibility.
What physical object does Sterne place in Volume VI of 'Tristram Shandy' to represent the unpredictable, looping, and digressive path of his storytelling technique?
- A A series of wavy, looping, and zig-zagging black lines drawn across the page
- B A printed musical score written for a chaotic, dissonant violin solo
- C An architectural diagram depicting a house built entirely with no doors
- D A table of numbers and figures that do not correctly add up to their totals
Correct answer: A series of wavy, looping, and zig-zagging black lines drawn across the page
Sterne literally draws his narrative lines on the page to show how far he has strayed from a straight, linear plot. The loops, dips, and sharp angles visually communicate his belief that a straight line is not the natural path for human thought or artistic storytelling.
In 'A Sentimental Journey', what small, trapped animal does Yorick encounter in Paris that inspires a famous meditation on the nature of liberty and his own emotional sensitivity?
- A A caged starling that repeats the phrase 'I can't get out'
- B A stray dog locked in a church basement
- C A blind mouse caught in a copper trap at an inn
- D A chained monkey performing for crowds on the Pont Neuf
Correct answer: A caged starling that repeats the phrase 'I can't get out'
Yorick hears a caged starling crying out 'I can't get out! I can't get out!' and is deeply moved by its plight. He attempts to buy the bird to free it, but realizes he cannot understand its cage mechanics easily. The bird becomes a powerful symbol for the horror of imprisonment, echoing Sterne's contemporary political views on slavery and freedom.
Widow Wadman attempts to discover a very specific piece of information about Uncle Toby during their courtship. What is she trying to find out?
- A The exact location and physical extent of his military groin wound
- B Whether he secretly funneled all his money into offshore banks
- C If he was legally married to a woman in Flanders during the war
- D The true authorship of his military history books
Correct answer: The exact location and physical extent of his military groin wound
Widow Wadman is romantically interested in Toby but is anxious to know if his old battlefield injury has rendered him impotent or sexually incapacitated. She uses various flirtatious tactics to get him to point out the exact 'place' where he was wounded, which the naive Toby mistakes for a request to look at his battlefield maps.
What is the final line of 'Tristram Shandy', spoken by Mrs. Shandy and commented on by Yorick, which deflates the entire epic novel with a comic locker-room pun?
- A What is this story about? A COCK and BULL, said Yorick, one of the best.
- B And so, the world moves on, despite our best fortifications.
- C Thus ends the long journey of a mind that never found its way home.
- D Amen, said Corporal Trim, wiping a single tear from his weathered eye.
Correct answer: What is this story about? A COCK and BULL, said Yorick, one of the best.
The novel ends abruptly with a discussion about a local bull that failed to perform its duties, leading Mrs. Shandy to ask what the whole narrative has been about. Yorick replies that it is a 'Cock and a Bull' story, a double entendre that references both an absurd, rambling tale and a joke about male potency, bringing the chaotic narrative to a sudden, laughing stop.
Laurence Sterne's narrative style is widely considered by modern literary critics to be an early, 18th-century precursor to which 20th-century avant-garde novelistic technique?
- A Stream of consciousness
- B Magical realism
- C Socialist realism
- D Hardboiled detective fiction
Correct answer: Stream of consciousness
By abandoning chronological order and focusing on the erratic internal thoughts, memories, and rapid mental associations of his characters, Sterne anticipated the stream of consciousness technique used by modernists like Virginia Woolf and James Joyce. His emphasis on psychological time over mechanical time was completely revolutionary for his era.
In 'A Sentimental Journey', what does Yorick exchange with a sweet-natured French monk in Calais as a physical token of peace and mutual forgiveness after an initial moment of rudeness?
- A Their tobacco boxes
- B Their leather shoes
- C Their silver pocket watches
- D Their silk handkerchiefs
Correct answer: Their tobacco boxes
After initially refusing to give the Franciscan monk any money, Yorick feels deep remorse for his lack of charity. When they meet again, they reconcile beautifully and exchange their horn and tortoise-shell snuff/tobacco boxes as a material pledge of peace. This moment highlights Sterne's ideal of immediate, uncalculating human connection across religious and national divides.