Q 01/05

Which pop artist began a famous series of portraits of Mao in 1972?

A) Roy Lichtenstein

B) Andy Warhol

C) Keith Haring

D) Jasper Johns

Answer · why

B) Andy Warhol

Andy Warhol: he chose Mao after reading in Life magazine that Mao was the most famous person in the world.

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

A poor peasant turned wealthy farmer: he bought grain from poorer farmers and sold it in town at a higher price.

Q 03/05

Mao's mother, Wen Qimei, was a devout follower of which faith?

A) Taoism

B) Christianity

C) Buddhism

D) Islam

Answer · why

C) Buddhism

Buddhism: Mao shared her faith as a boy, but his reading turned him sceptical by his teens.

Q 04/05

As a teenager, Mao quoted the Confucian classics to win arguments with whom?

A) His younger brother

B) The village headman

C) His father

D) A local magistrate

Answer · why

C) His father

His father: accused of being unfilial, Mao answered with passages saying elders must be kind and affectionate.

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

Their queue pigtails: he and his friend then forcibly cut off the queues of several classmates.