logo

107 pages 3 hours read

Stephen King

Misery

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1987

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Exam Questions

Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-book review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. What is the significance of Annie’s statement that Paul is just like a baby, but good?

A) Given the contrast she makes, it reveals that Annie does not believe babies are good.

B) Given Annie’s checkered past with babies, it indicates what she might do to Paul.

C) It provides some insight into how Annie feels about the babies she killed.

D) It indicates that Annie believes Paul is innocent.

2. What is unusual about Annie’s aversion to profanity?

A) Annie uses profanity herself when it suits her.

B) Paul is her favorite author, so she should like it.

C) Annie habitually does much worse than swearing.

D) Annie has Paul held captive but doesn’t like his behavior.

3. What does the bird Paul sees at the zoo symbolize?

A) Paul’s own confinement in Annie’s house

B) The lack of freedom experienced by Annie’s animals

C) Paul’s dream of seeing Annie jailed for her actions

D) A sense of belonging with Annie

4. What is the most likely reason Annie refers to herself as Paul’s mother?

A) She believes she is like his mother because she is taking good care of him.

B) In her warped sense of reality, Annie has undeniable religious reasons for becoming Paul’s caretaker.

C) She feels providence has put her in a position to morally instruct, feed, medicate, and care for Paul.

D) She identifies with his mother because she must teach him what to write.

5. What role do Paul’s dreams play in Misery?

A) They serve as inspiration for what Paul should write next.

B) They foreshadow what the reader should expect to happen.

C) They give insight into Paul’s feelings about his circumstances.

D) They encourage Paul to continue living despite his present situation.

6. How is Stephen King’s book somewhat autobiographical?

A) He has had experiences with overly zealous fans and struggles with the writing process.

B) King see similarities between his relationship with his mother and Annie and Paul’s relationship.

C) The book draws comparisons between King’s accident and Paul’s.

D) Paul’s feelings illustrate King’s desire to no longer write horror novels.

7. Which of the following plot scenarios illustrates the depth of Paul’s addiction?

A) He yells when he is in pain so Annie will get him the pills.

B) He decides to duck some of the pills Annie gets him but then decides he isn’t quite ready.

C) He stays with Annie instead of calling out to the police because she provides him with a drug supply.

D He refuses to take the pills because he needs a strong mind to finish Misery’s Return.

8. How does Paul’s attitude toward writing change over the course of the novel?

A) He becomes less likely to write because of the ordeal with Annie.

B) He is haunted by Annie’s cruelty and therefore does not write any longer.

C) His experience with Annie inspires him to write about what she did to him.

D) He realizes the role drug and alcohol abuse play in his inability to write.

9. What comparison does Annie draw between Paul and the rat she brings him?

A) She says that Paul, like the rat, will likely drown in the cellar.

B) Annie tells Paul that he probably dreams of escaping, like the rat.

C) Annie indicates she will squeeze the life out of Paul, like the rat.

D) Annie tells Paul she will get the gun and kill them both like the rat.

10. What motivates Paul to continue living after Annie severs his foot?

A) He wants to know the end of Misery’s Return.

B) He cannot wait to get his revenge on Annie.

C) He knows the police will find his car eventually.

D) He likes Annie despite what she has done to him.

11. What is “the gotta”?

A) The will to survive

B) The strength to keep writing

C) The need to know the ending

D)  The craving to understand someone’s motives

12. What does Africa symbolize to Paul?

A) Strength

B) Perseverance

C) Assistance

D) Freedom

13. After Annie has been injured, what is Paul’s top priority?

A) Getting rid of evidence

B) Making sure Annie is dead

C) His safety

D) His manuscript

14. Who or what is symbolized by the goddess in King’s novel Misery?

A) Fear

B) Anger

C) Annie Wilkes

D) Misery Chastain

15. Why does Paul say, “Can you?”

A) It is a reminder of a game he used to play at camp about storytelling.

B) It is a mystery whether he can do something he doesn’t want to.

C) It is what Annie asks him before he continues the Misery series.

D) It is the question he asks himself as he tries to overcome addiction.

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. What symbols are used in the novel Misery to describe Paul’s Confinement and Captivity?

2. What role does Drug Addiction play in the novel, and why does Paul ultimately choose to overcome it?

blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text