Q 01/05

In which Chinese province was Mao born in 1893?

A) Shaanxi

B) Sichuan

C) Hunan

D) Guangdong

Answer · why

C) Hunan

He grew up near Shaoshan village and kept a marked Hunanese accent all his life.

Q 02/05

What was Mao's father, Mao Yichang?

A) A travelling tea merchant

B) A poor peasant turned wealthy farmer

C) A minor Qing customs official

D) A Confucian village schoolteacher

Answer · why

B) A poor peasant turned wealthy farmer

Mao described him as a stern disciplinarian who beat his children.

Q 03/05

How old was Mao when his father put him into an arranged marriage with the 17-year-old Luo Yixiu?

A) 13

B) 18

C) 16

D) 15

Answer · why

A) 13

He refused to recognise her as his wife and became a fierce critic of arranged marriage.

Q 04/05

Which two classic novels did the young Mao prefer to the Confucian texts he was made to study?

A) Dream of the Red Chamber and The Scholars

B) The Art of War and The Book of Songs

C) Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Water Margin

D) The Analects and Mencius

Answer · why

C) Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Water Margin

He also read translations of Adam Smith, Rousseau and Darwin on his father's farm.

Q 05/05

What did Mao and a friend cut off in 1911 as a symbol of rebellion against the Manchu monarchy?

A) Their queue pigtails

B) Their scholar's fingernails

C) The tops of their conical hats

D) The sleeves of their gowns

Answer · why

A) Their queue pigtails

The queue was a sign of subservience to the emperor.