Tess of the d'Urbervilles, Chapter 21 quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. What problem disrupts the dairy at the beginning of Chapter 21?

   • Several cows have fallen ill
   • Correct answer: The butter will not come in the churn
   • The milk has gone sour overnight
   • A storm has damaged the milk-house roof

   The chapter opens with "a great stir in the milk-house" because "the churn revolved as usual, but the butter would not come," paralyzing the entire dairy.

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2. 2

   Question 2. What does Mrs. Crick suggest is causing the butter problem?

   • The cows are eating bad grass
   • The churn mechanism is broken
   • Correct answer: Someone in the house is in love
   • The weather is too warm for churning

   Mrs. Crick tentatively suggests, "Perhaps somebody in the house is in love," citing a folk superstition she heard in her younger days that love prevents butter from forming.

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3. 3

   Question 3. Where does Jack Dollop hide when the angry mother arrives at the dairy?

   • Behind the hay bales in the barn
   • Under a table in the kitchen
   • Correct answer: Inside the butter churn
   • In the hayloft above the milk-house

   In a panic, Jack "scrambled into the churn through the trap door, and shut himself inside, just as the young woman's mother busted into the milk-house."

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4. 4

   Question 4. What weapon does the angry mother bring to confront Jack Dollop?

   • A rolling pin
   • Correct answer: A great brass-mounted umbrella
   • A heavy walking stick
   • An iron ladle from the dairy

   The mother arrives "wi' a great brass-mounted umbrella in her hand that would ha' felled an ox."

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5. 5

   Question 5. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

   • Did the other dairy workers find Dairyman Crick's Jack Dollop story amusing?

     Happened

     The listeners were "smiling their comments" at the story. Only Tess found it sorrowful rather than humorous, as it touched "the tender place in her experience."

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6. 6

   Question 6. What excuse does Tess give for leaving the room during the storytelling?

   • She says she needs to check on the cows
   • Correct answer: She says she feels ill from the heat
   • She says she has finished her morning tasks
   • She makes no excuse and simply walks out

   Tess says "How warm 'tis today!" and then explains, "I was faint—and—I think I am better out o' doors."

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7. 7

   Question 7. What ironic pet name does Dairyman Crick call Tess?

   • Sweetheart
   • Correct answer: Maidy
   • My dove
   • Milkmaid queen

   He calls her "maidy" (meaning maiden/virgin), which Hardy notes he uses "with unconscious irony" given Tess's past.

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8. 8

   Question 8. How does Hardy describe the evening sun through Tess's eyes after the Jack Dollop story?

   • As a warm golden blanket of comfort
   • As a distant pale disc behind clouds
   • Correct answer: As a great inflamed wound in the sky
   • As a fading ember dying in the west

   Hardy writes that "the evening sun was now ugly to her, like a great inflamed wound in the sky," using pathetic fallacy to project Tess's inner anguish onto nature.

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9. 9

   Question 9. What does Izz Huett do with Angel Clare's shadow?

   • She traces it on paper to keep
   • She steps into it to feel close to him
   • Correct answer: She kisses his shadow on the wall
   • She points it out to the other girls

   Retty reveals that when Angel's shadow fell on the wall near Izz, "She put her mouth against the wall and kissed the shade of his mouth."

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10. 10

    Question 10. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

    • Did the three milkmaids know that Angel Clare preferred Tess?

      Happened

      Marian tells the others, "Because he likes Tess Durbeyfield best... I have watched him every day, and have found it out."

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11. 11

    Question 11. What does "raillery" mean as used in "saying with tender raillery"?

    • Harsh criticism or scolding
    • Correct answer: Good-humored teasing or banter
    • Formal politeness or courtesy
    • Nervous hesitation in speech

    Raillery means light, playful mockery or teasing that is meant kindly. Dairyman Crick uses tender raillery when speaking affectionately to Tess about the warm weather.

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12. 12

    Question 12. Which milkmaid is described as "the last bud of the Paridelles"?

    • Marian
    • Izz Huett
    • Correct answer: Retty Priddle
    • Tess Durbeyfield

    Retty Priddle is called "the last bud of the Paridelles, so important in the county annals," suggesting her family, like Tess's, has declined from former importance.

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13. 13

    Question 13. Why does Izz say Angel will never marry any of them?

    • Because he is already engaged to someone else
    • Correct answer: Because he is a gentleman's son planning to farm abroad
    • Because he has taken a vow of celibacy
    • Because the dairyman has forbidden workplace romances

    Izz declares it is silly to hope because Angel is "a gentleman's son, who's going to be a great landowner and farmer abroad" and would more likely "ask us to come wi'en as farmhands."

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14. 14

    Question 14. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

    • Did Tess feel jealous when she overheard the milkmaids confessing their love for Angel?

      Didn't happen

      Hardy explicitly states that "scarce the least feeling of jealousy arose in her breast," as Tess knew she held Angel's preference. Instead, she felt guilt about whether she had the right to keep his attention.

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15. 15

    Question 15. What does "ballyragging" mean in the context of the Jack Dollop story?

    • Searching methodically through rooms
    • Correct answer: Scolding or berating someone aggressively
    • Dragging someone by force
    • Whispering threats quietly

    Ballyragging means scolding or bullying someone loudly and aggressively. The angry mother was "ballyragging Jack by side and by seam" as she hunted for him through the dairy.

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