Jane Eyre, Chapter IX quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. What disease causes the epidemic at Lowood Institution?

   • Correct answer: Typhus
   • Scarlet fever
   • Cholera
   • Consumption

   A typhus epidemic sweeps through Lowood, infecting forty-five of the eighty students. Helen Burns has a separate illness — consumption (tuberculosis).

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2. 2

   Question 2. How many of Lowood's eighty students are infected during the epidemic?

   • Twenty
   • Thirty-five
   • Correct answer: Forty-five
   • Sixty

   The text states that "forty-five out of the eighty girls lay ill at one time."

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3. 3

   Question 3. What does Mr. Brocklehurst do during the typhus epidemic?

   • He organizes medical care for the students
   • Correct answer: He and his family never come near Lowood
   • He sends his own physician to treat the sick
   • He closes the school permanently

   The text notes that "Mr. Brocklehurst and his family never came near Lowood now," revealing his cowardice and hypocrisy.

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4. 4

   Question 4. Who is Jane's companion during the days of freedom in the woods?

   • Bessie Lee
   • Helen Burns
   • Miss Temple
   • Correct answer: Mary Ann Wilson

   Jane befriends Mary Ann Wilson, described as a shrewd, witty older girl. Helen Burns is ill upstairs with consumption.

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5. 5

   Question 5. What illness does Helen Burns have?

   • Typhus
   • Influenza
   • Correct answer: Consumption
   • Pneumonia

   Helen has consumption (the 19th-century term for tuberculosis), not the typhus that afflicts most of the other sick students.

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6. 6

   Question 6. Where is Helen Burns staying when Jane sneaks to see her?

   • The garden verandah
   • The fever room
   • The long dormitory
   • Correct answer: Miss Temple's room

   Helen is placed in a small crib in Miss Temple's room, separate from the typhus patients in the fever-room.

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7. 7

   Question 7. What does Helen tell Jane about her feelings toward death?

   • Correct answer: She is very happy and at peace, with faith in God
   • She refuses to discuss it and changes the subject
   • She is terrified and begs Jane to help her
   • She is angry at God for her suffering

   Helen says she is "very happy" and expresses unwavering faith in God, calling Him her "Maker," "father," and "friend."

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8. 8

   Question 8. What is inscribed on Helen Burns's gravestone?

   • "In Memoriam"
   • Correct answer: "Resurgam"
   • "Requiescat in Pace"
   • "Beloved Friend"

   Helen's gravestone bears the Latin word "Resurgam," meaning "I shall rise again," reflecting her Christian faith in resurrection.

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9. 9

   Question 9. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

   • Jane is punished for sneaking out of the dormitory to visit Helen Burns.

     Didn't happen

     Jane is not reprimanded for leaving her bed. The text says "I was not reprimanded for leaving my bed; people had something else to think about."

   • Miss Temple finds Jane asleep in Helen's crib at dawn, with her face against Helen's shoulder.

     Happened

     The chapter states that "Miss Temple, on returning to her own room at dawn, had found me laid in the little crib; my face against Helen Burns's shoulder, my arms round her neck."

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10. 10

    Question 10. What does "ameliorated" mean in the sentence "its cutting winds ameliorated"?

    • Grew stronger or more severe
    • Correct answer: Improved or became less severe
    • Changed direction suddenly
    • Melted away or disappeared

    Ameliorated means improved or made better. The winter winds become gentler as spring arrives.

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11. 11

    Question 11. What does "pestilence" mean in "the cradle of fog and fog-bred pestilence"?

    • Correct answer: A deadly epidemic disease
    • A dense, low-lying vapour
    • A minor annoyance or bother
    • A violent, cutting wind

    Pestilence means a fatal epidemic disease. Bronte uses it to describe the typhus that spreads through Lowood from its damp environment.

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12. 12

    Question 12. What does "consumption" refer to in the context of Helen Burns's illness?

    • A wasting fever
    • Excessive eating
    • Exhaustion from overwork
    • Correct answer: Tuberculosis

    Consumption was the 19th-century term for tuberculosis, a chronic infectious disease of the lungs. Helen dies of consumption, separate from the typhus epidemic.

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