Estimated Reading Time: 15 min
The Sound and the Fury MCQs
1. What is Benjy’s age on April 7, 1928?
A. Twenty-one years
B. Thirty-three years
C. Seven years
D. Fifty years
2. Who is Benjy’s current caretaker on his birthday?
A. Versh
B. Dilsey
C. T.P.
D. Luster
3. What sensory detail defines Caddy for Benjy in his memory?
A. Wisteria smell
B. Tree scent
C. Perfume odor
D. Bright color
4. What object does Benjy cling to, associating it with Caddy’s departure?
A. The porch
B. The fence gate
C. The cedar tree
D. The flower tree
5. What sound does Benjy frequently make when distressed?
A. Loud yell
B. Hoarse bellow
C. Soft whisper
D. Sudden scream
6. What was Quentin (the brother)’s primary symbol of frustration and time?
A. The bridge
B. Grandfather’s watch
C. The shadow
D. His books
7. What terrible act did Quentin falsely confess to his Father?
A. Theft
B. Incest
C. Murder
D. Cheating
8. According to Father, what happens when a clock stops?
A. Time dies
B. Time comes alive
C. Life ends
D. Sadness begins
9. What objects did Quentin purchase to serve as weights for his intended action?
A. Flat-irons
B. Large stones
C. Heavy bricks
D. Iron shoes
10. Which child did Mother consider her only hope and joy?
A. Quentin
B. Benjy
C. Candace
D. Jason
11. When Caddy climbs the tree, what detail do Benjy and Versh see?
A. Bare feet
B. Muddy drawers
C. Long hair
D. New dress
12. When Benjy’s voice rises during the service, what force is Dilsey focused on?
A. Resurrection
B. Time
C. Damuddy
D. The devil
13. What was Jason’s financial motivation for his cruelty toward Quentin (daughter)?
A. Love of money
B. Bank job loss
C. Family pride
D. Mother’s health
14. What was Benjy’s original name before it was changed?
A. Jason
B. Roskus
C. Maury
D. Versh
15. What type of tree does Caddy smell like, sometimes mixed with honeysuckle?
A. Peach
B. Magnolia
C. Cedar
D. Apple
16. Where did Caddy fall down and get wet when the children were young?
A. The well
B. The ditch
C. The branch
D. The pond
17. What does Jason threaten to do if Quentin (daughter) tears her dress?
A. Ground her
B. Whip her
C. Tell Mother
D. Take care
18. What food item was Dilsey preparing when she began to sing softly?
A. Biscuits
B. Cornbread
C. Eggs
D. Grits
19. What type of flower does Benjy play with or receive repeatedly?
A. Roses
B. Dogwood
C. Jimson weed
D. Lilacs
20. What was Quentin Compson doing while leaning on the bridge rail?
A. Sketching
B. Watching gulls
C. Hiding flat-irons
D. Watching fish
21. Why was the pasture sold?
A. Pay debts
B. Buy a car
C. Send Quentin to Harvard
D. Fix the house
22. Why did Quentin (daughter) throw her glass of water at the supper table?
A. Jason’s taunt
B. Disrespectful
C. Argument lost
D. Dilsey interfered
23. What did Luster try to find so he could attend the show that night?
A. Dime
B. Nickel
C. Quarter
D. Dollar
24. Who was Caddy’s first known love interest mentioned by name by Quentin?
A. Herbert Head
B. Charlie
C. Dalton Ames
D. Gerald Bland
25. When Caddy’s head is on Father’s shoulder, what color is her hair?
A. Bright yellow
B. Dark brown
C. Like fire
D. Ash blond
26. What did Jason do immediately upon finding that Quentin’s window was open?
A. Called the sheriff
B. Ran to the car
C. Opened the box
D. Hit Mother
27. Who told Quentin that purity/virginity is a negative state and contrary to nature?
A. Shreve
B. Caddy
C. Father
D. Dalton Ames
28. When he was held by Caddy, what caused Benjy to stop crying?
A. Her dress
B. The tree scent
C. Her arms
D. The moonlight
29. Who was the showman Quentin (daughter) was running away with?
A. Not named
B. A golfer
C. The man with a red tie
D. A musician
30. What item did Quentin (the brother) break off his watch before packing?
A. The glass
B. The hands
C. The chain
D. The casing
31. Who was the servant who accompanied Mother and Benjy in the carriage?
A. Luster
B. Versh
C. Roskus
D. T.P.
32. What illness afflicted Roskus, preventing him from lifting his arms?
A. Fever
B. Rheumatism
C. Consumption
D. Bad blood
33. Why did Quentin strike Gerald Bland?
A. Gerald insulted Caddy
B. Gerald mentioned his sister
C. Gerald took his money
D. Gerald mocked him
34. What item of Caddy’s did Benjy hold to comfort him later in life?
A. A picture
B. A slipper
C. Her glove
D. Her hair ribbon
35. What kind of clothing did Jason believe he’d wear if he tried to attend Harvard?
A. Silk shirt
B. White collar
C. A strait jacket
D. Plain suit
36. What name did Mother forbid Dilsey to speak in the new baby’s hearing?
A. Benjy
B. Maury
C. Quentin
D. Candace
37. Where was Quentin Compson attending university?
A. Sewanee
B. Harvard
C. Princeton
D. Oxford
38. What does Benjy see when Quentin kicks T.P. into the pig trough?
A. The barn
B. Whirling shapes
C. Caddy
D. Mother crying
39. What thought helped Quentin trick his shadow while standing over the water?
A. Shadow was long
B. Shadow was invisible
C. Shadow was flat
D. Shadow was watching
40. Who did Jason believe was in a conspiracy with the telegraph company?
A. Show folks
B. Eastern Jews
C. Harvard boys
D. Mother
41. What does Dilsey say is required of her when she is “long forgot”?
A. To be in the book
B. To be famous
C. To be remembered
D. To say her name
42. Where did Quentin meet the little Italian girl he walked with?
A. The station
B. The bakery
C. The drug store
D. The library
43. What did Caddy propose doing if she got whipped for getting wet?
A. Hide out
B. Run away
C. Blame Quentin
D. Apologize
44. What was the sickness Mother was experiencing repeatedly in Benjy’s section?
A. Headache
B. Crying fits
C. General illness
D. Camphor sickness
45. What specific kind of building did Quentin seek to locate to hear a whistle?
A. A church
B. A factory
C. A mill
D. A farm
46. What did Uncle Maury use to do as a child that Jason found humorous/pitiful?
A. Eat dirt
B. Roll his head
C. Steal money
D. Chew paper
47. What was Caddy wearing when Benjy saw her after Damuddy died?
A. New coat
B. Shining veil
C. Black dress
D. Wedding ring
48. What does Jason claim is the only way to manage women successfully?
A. Keep guessing
B. Threaten them
C. Buy things
D. Always lie
49. Where does Luster drive Benjy at the very end of the narrative?
A. The Square
B. The pasture
C. The graveyard
D. Home
50. What action by Luster causes Benjy to hush immediately at the final turn?
A. The whip
B. The speed
C. The monument
D. The correct turn
Brief Overview
The Sound and the Fury is a novel by William Faulkner, first published on October 7, 1929. It is a tragic story told in four confusing parts. The novel details the slow decline of the once-proud Compson family and how their errors and pride destroy them over time.
The youngest brother is Benjy. He is 33 years old but has the mind of a child. He is cared for by the loyal servant, Dilsey. Benjy deeply loves his sister, Caddy, who sometimes smells like trees. Caddy later becomes pregnant and marries Herbert Head.
The second brother, Quentin, is severely sad and obsessed with time. He plans to commit suícide by drowning. He purposely breaks his grandfather’s watch, trying to stop time. The family sold their land so Quentin could attend Harvard University.
The third brother, Jason, is cold, cruel, and feels constantly cheated. He secretly steals money orders that Caddy sends to her daughter, also named Quentin (the niece). The Mother is often sick and worries greatly. She insists the daughter must never hear her mother’s name.
Caddy’s daughter, Quentin, is rebellious at age seventeen. She sneaks out to meet a showman. She climbs out of her window and runs away, taking Jason’s hidden money. Jason chases them to another town, Mottson, but he fails to recover the money.
Dilsey, the old servant, holds the fragmented family together. On Easter Sunday, Luster drives Benjy in the carriage to the graveyard. When Luster turns the wrong way, Benjy bellows in panic. Jason stops the carriage, beats them, and forces Luster to turn right, which briefly restores Benjy’s sense of order.
