The Beautiful Empire MCQs

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Author: Nasir Iqbal | Assistant Professor of English Literature


Updated on: November 17, 2025
Estimated Reading Time: 16 min

The Beautiful Empire MCQs

1. What was the narrator’s mother’s nationality?

A. Portuguese native
B. Brazilian-born
C. English mother
D. German immigrant

C. English mother.
The narrator was born in 1851 to a Brazilian father and an English mother in Rio Grande do Sul.

2. What pervaded the 19th-century air?

A. Wealth and science
B. Hope and promise
C. Debate and conflict
D. Philosophy and nature

B. Hope and promise.
The air during the glorious nineteenth century was “perfumed with hope” and oceans swelled with future promise.

3. What country was Brazil warring against in 1865?

A. Uruguay
B. Argentina
C. Against Paraguay
D. Imperial Spain

C. Against Paraguay.
The meeting with the Emperor occurred in 1865, shortly after Brazil had entered into war against Paraguay.

4. What is the narrator’s full given name?

A. Peixoto Xavier
B. Antônio da Silva
C. Gregório Peixoto
D. Dom Pedro Secundo

C. Gregório Peixoto.
The young man told the Emperor his full name was Gregório Peixoto da Silva Xavier.
5. Where was the American naturalist exploring?

A. The Amazon
B. Rio Grande do Sul
C. European cities
D. The Pacific islands

A. The Amazon.
The Emperor received a letter from an American naturalist who was currently exploring the Amazon region.

6. What title did the Emperor confer upon Barroso?

A. General Osorio
B. Baron das Amazonas
C. Commander General
D. Count of Riachuelo

B. Baron das Amazonas.
The Emperor conferred a cross and the title of Baron das Amazonas upon Barroso, the commander at Riachuelo.

7. Why did Gregório’s mother want to return to England?

A. Father’s debt
B. Came into inheritance
C. Harsh Brazilian sun
D. War had begun

B. Came into inheritance.
Gregório’s mother inherited a thriving estate in Hampshire, providing a magical solution to their dire problem.

8. What ruined the father’s cattle herd?

A. Creditors’ seizures
B. War losses
C. Foot, mouth disease
D. Drought disaster

C. Foot, mouth disease.
The father’s entire cattle herd was wiped out by foot and mouth disease, leading to severe loss.

9. Why did Gregório join the army?

A. To gain glory
B. Lacked filial sentiment
C. Parents sent him
D. To earn quick money

B. Lacked filial sentiment.
He ran away and joined the army, citing a lack of conventional filial sentiments toward his parents.
10. What Brazilian Battalion was Gregório assigned to?

A. The First
B. The Tenth
C. Ninth Battalion
D. Rio Grande

C. Ninth Battalion.
The impatient officer accepted Gregório’s application and assigned him to the Ninth Brazilian Battalion.

11. What did Gregório fear most from his friends?

A. Arrest by father
B. Being ridiculed
C. Being called a coward
D. Execution swiftly

C. Being called a coward.
He was more afraid of suffering humiliation and mockery from friends who would call him a coward.

12. What did Gregório write he was doing in his note?

A. Joining the military
B. Going to England
C. Seeking his destiny
D. Rio de Janeiro

D. Rio de Janeiro.
Gregório wrote a courteous note stating he was going to Rio de Janeiro to make his own way in the world.

13. What physical description of Gregório was true?

A. Taller than many
B. Muscular, active
C. Both A and B
D. Physically nervous

C. Both A and B.
Gregório was as tall as most adults, taller than many, and robust/muscular from his farm life.

14. What battle were the soldiers celebrating when Gregório met the Emperor?

A. Bellaco
B. Riachuelo
C. Corrientes
D. Itapirú

B. Riachuelo.
The Emperor was giving an audience to soldiers and sailors who had taken part in the victorious battle of Riachuelo.
15. How wide was the river where the steamers were sighted?

A. One mile
B. Two and a half miles
C. Vast, still ocean
D. Parana River

B. Two and a half miles.
On the misty morning of the confrontation, the river was two and a half miles wide.

16. What truth did Gregório realise about the adult world?

A. Universal deception
B. Soldiers fight for money
C. War is a comedy
D. Barroso was a genius

A. Universal deception.
Gregório realised that adult existence involved maintaining a universal deception, subscribing to false representations of truth.

17. To whom was Gregório transferred early in 1866?

A. Admiral Barroso
B. Emperor’s guard
C. General Osorio’s
D. López’s spies

C. General Osorio’s.
The army was reorganised in early 1866, and Gregório was transferred to General Osorio’s company.

18. What made Gregório miserable during long waits?

A. Lack of food
B. Missing his mother
C. Emptiness of his life
D. Fear of battle

C. Emptiness of his life.
During long hours of waiting, he sometimes felt miserable reflecting on the emptiness of his life.

19. What material profits did Gregório’s older companions dream of?

A. Women and wine
B. War land deals
C. Material profits
D. Decorations only

C. Material profits.
Many older companions spent time dreaming about the material profits they could acquire from the war.
20. Who was the tall Negro friend Gregório found?

A. Barroso
B. Alfredo
C. Osorio
D. Ribera

B. Alfredo.
Gregório was happy to discover his friend Alfredo, the tall Negro, in the new contingent of soldiers.

21. What did Alfredo say the Indians thought about riding the rapids?

A. Know a woman
B. Know great pain
C. Know how to swim
D. Know about life

A. Know a woman.
Alfredo said that according to the Indians, “Ride the rapids and you know a woman”.

22. What duty were Gregório and Alfredo performing when captured?

A. Scout patrol
B. Digging the trench
C. Guarding supplies
D. Fighting fiercely

B. Digging the trench.
They were assigned to the company whose duty was digging a trench when they were surprised by firing.

23. What did the Paraguayan officer demand Gregório call López?

A. Sir President
B. Your Excellency
C. General López
D. Great Leader

B. Your Excellency.
An officer slapped Gregório, instructing him that the president was to be addressed as “Your Excellency”.

24. What false saying did Alfredo tell López about?

A. A leaf on a branch
B. Leopard’s back spots
C. Quietest farts
D. Canoe full of water

B. Leopard’s back spots.
Alfredo used the invented African saying that being a spot on the leopard’s back limits one’s vision.
25. What detail did Gregório recite about the allied forces?

A. Sacks of beans
B. Enemy positions
C. López’s spies
D. Artillery numbers

A. Sacks of beans.
Gregório listed various assets, including artillery, cavalry, and three thousand sacks of beans.

26. What was López’s final judgment of the two Brazilians?

A. Dangerous spies
B. Fools and imbeciles
C. Cowards all
D. Worthless soldiers

B. Fools and imbeciles.
López shouted “Fools!” and “Imbeciles!” ordering them to be tied up to show the Brazilian army’s idiocy.

27. Who came to interrogate the boys after López left?

A. A general
B. A bishop
C. An aide-de-camp
D. Mrs Lynch

C. An aide-de-camp.
López sent a pale, delicate-featured aide-de-camp to question them further in a small room.

28. Who was Mrs Lynch?

A. American spy
B. Wife of Barroso
C. López’s mistress
D. English immigrant

C. López’s mistress.
Mrs Lynch was the wife and mistress of the Paraguayan dictator López.

29. What was the colour of Mrs Lynch’s dress?

A. Dark green
B. Scarlet red
C. White silk
D. Yellow satin

A. Dark green.
Mrs Lynch was seen in a dark green dress, her reddish golden hair catching the sunlight.
30. What was the common belief after the Battle of the Bellaco?

A. Barroso was incompetent
B. Men had distorted the truth
C. Plan perfectly executed
D. The enemy was weak

C. Plan perfectly executed.
Despite the reality, the men talked about the Bellaco battle as if every detail was perfectly executed.

31. How did Gregório describe his childhood innocence?

A. Very stùpid
B. Naturally curious
C. Was an innocent
D. Scared of girls

C. Was an innocent.
Gregório confessed that at nearly sixteen years old, he was an innocent, unlike most Brazilian boys.

32. What was Alfredo’s side business on commission?

A. Selling army supplies
B. Agent for clients
C. Gambling games
D. Writing letters

B. Agent for clients.
Alfredo used his connections to become an agent for businessmen, earning a commission from clients he brought.

33. What did Gregório drink before his sexual encounter?

A. Plenty of water
B. Three strong drinks
C. Wine and brandy
D. Cheap beer

B. Three strong drinks.
Gregório drank cachaça to still a nervous fluttering, consuming his third drink philosophically.

34. What was the Indian girl’s age whom Alfredo found?

A. Only fourteen
B. Sixteen years
C. Barely adult
D. Very young

A. Only fourteen.
Alfredo brought Gregório a “fresh and untouched” Indian girl who was only fourteen years old.
35. How did the Navy ensure its nightly game continued?

A. Never aimed
B. Used small guns
C. Let some canoes through
D. Only fired at dawn

C. Let some canoes through.
The navy let some canoes get through each night, giving hope to the refugees and continuing the sport.

36. What item was lost when the bow of the canoe was hit?

A. The red lantern
B. The canoe itself
C. A soldier’s rifle
D. The drinking water

A. The red lantern.
When the Brazilian gun hit the bow, the man holding the red lantern saw it go flying into the water.

37. What phrase did Alfredo repeat when joking about the war’s absurdity?

A. We were fools
B. What a war
C. The navy is great
D. I am a slave

B. What a war.
Alfredo repeatedly exclaimed, “What a war!” to comment on the absurdity of fighting cows instead of Paraguayans.

38. What was the soldier trying to do to Mrs Lynch when Gregório intervened?

A. Question her
B. Shoot her belly
C. Brutal lust
D. Take her horse

C. Brutal lust.
The Argentine soldier dropped his rifle and sprang forward at Mrs Lynch “in a violent impulse of brutal lust”.

39. What did Gregório use to strike the soldier?

A. Custom knife
B. His rifle’s stock
C. Rifle butt
D. Heavy fist

C. Rifle butt.
Gregório picked up the rifle and swung the rifle-butt with all his might at the soldier’s head.
40. What country did Mrs Lynch suggest had no black slaves?

A. Argentina
B. Brazil
C. Paraguay
D. Uruguay

C. Paraguay.
Gregório noted Alfredo’s black skin was risky because Paraguay did not have black slaves.

41. How did Mrs Lynch travel through the interior?

A. By war-steamer
B. By horseback
C. With a large guard
D. On foot

B. By horseback.
Mrs Lynch was seen entering the wood on horseback and later mounted her horse to continue her journey.

42. What animal did Gregório compare the returning merchants to?

A. A dog
B. A horse
C. A hypocrite
D. A snake

A. A dog.
Gregório thought Mr Singleton was like a dog who first bites and then expects to be petted.

43. What quality of Mrs Lynch did Gregório fear?

A. Her harshness
B. Her ambition
C. Power of her persuasion
D. Her martial skill

C. Power of her persuasion.
Gregório was relieved when she abandoned the attempt to pervert his loyalty, fearing the power of her persuasion.

44. What was López doing when fighting broke out near Pikysyry?

A. Preparing a feast
B. Fleeing the area
C. Trapped at Itá Yvaté
D. Receiving reports

A. Preparing a feast.
The servant was talking about preparing a great feast for Christmas when the heavy bombardment began upriver.
45. What sight proved that López was determined to continue fighting?

A. Dying soldiers
B. Boys singing patriotic songs
C. Burning trenches
D. Fleeing civilians

B. Boys singing patriotic songs.
Carts full of boys aged twelve or thirteen were sent to Pikysyry, singing patriotic songs, showing López’s resolve.

46. What was the narrator’s anglicized name in England?

A. Gregory Smith
B. Gregory Paxton-Silver
C. Anthony Paxton
D. Gregory Peixoto

B. Gregory Paxton-Silver.
The inn landlord referred to Gregório’s father as Mr Paxton-Silver, the anglicized family name.

47. What did Gregório compare the Brazilian landscapes to?

A. English gardens
B. Enraged gods
C. Enormous savagery
D. Liquid beauty

C. Enormous savagery.
The Brazilian landscapes possessed an enormous savagery and lacked the cultivated proportion of the English countryside.

48. What did Gregório’s father want him to do immediately upon arrival?

A. Take Frolick out
B. Apologize to mother
C. See his brother
D. Drink some tea

A. Take Frolick out.
His father, pretending Gregório had never left, asked if he was taking Frolick (the spaniel) out for his walk.

49. Where was Gregório’s elder brother, Antônio, living?

A. At Oxford
B. In London
C. In India
D. In Rio

C. In India.
Gregório’s father told him that his elder brother Anthony (Antônio) was currently living in India.
50. What business did Huggins imply the father was conducting?

A. Fox-hunting
B. Writing letters
C. Talking of local affairs
D. Reading poetry

B. Writing letters.
Huggins revealed that the father spent his time writing letters to his dead wife, which Huggins himself wrote.

Brief Overview

The Beautiful Empire is a novel by Zulfikar Ghose, first published in 1975. It is the second book in Ghose’s “Brazilian trilogy.” The narrative focuses on post-colonialism, reality versus fantasy, and the decline of the British Empire through a picaresque adventure.

The story tells the life of Gregório Peixoto da Silva Xavier. He believes his soul has lived many lives. He was born in Brazil in 1851 to a Brazilian father and an English mother. At age fourteen, Gregório runs away and joins the Brazilian army during the war against Paraguay. He and his friend, Alfredo, are captured but escape.

After the war, Gregório sails to England to find his parents. He discovers his mother is dead. His father, now called Mr Paxton-Silver, is mentally unwell, believing his wife is still alive. Gregório studied in England for four years before returning to Brazil.

In 1875, Gregório goes back to Brazil with Mr. Hofman to make a fortune in the rubber trade. Hofman gives Gregório a job, a luxurious home, and suggests he marry one of his two daughters, Erika or Johanna. Gregório falls in love with Claire Thornbury. They marry.

Gregório quickly becomes rich by starting floating houses of pleasure with Alfredo. Gregório manipulates his rival, Hermann Werner, using information about Mr. Singleton’s past. This manipulation causes Hermann to murder Mr. and Mrs. Singleton. Their daughter, Gloria, survives and later takes over her father’s pleasure ship business.

Gregório’s wife, Claire, dies with their son during childbirth. The Brazilian rubber economy collapses due to British plantations in the East. Alfredo and Gloria betray Gregório. He is falsely accused of murder and treason. He is arrested and placed on a ship to Rio. The novel concludes with Gregório on the ship, gazing out at the beautiful city of Rio.

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