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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When Mary finally catches up with Ned on that October day, what is he doing?
(a) Staring out the front door.
(b) Searching the lower floor for the intruder.
(c) Looking through his papers in the library.
(d) Pacing in front of the library fireplace.

2. What event causes Mary to temporarily forget about the mysterious man they saw in October?
(a) The greenhouse boiler breaks.
(b) She and Ned climb Meldon Steep.
(c) She receives a letter from Alida Stair.
(d) One of the housemaids quits.

3. When Mary tells Ned what she has learned from her mail, how does Ned react?
(a) He gets angry at her and asks whether she trusts him.
(b) He relaxes and tells her it is nothing to worry about.
(c) He snatches the mail from her and throws it into the fire.
(d) He looks guilty and immediately leaves the room.

4. On page 84, the narrator links isolated environments to "acuities of emotion." What are "acuities of emotion"?
(a) The ability to perceive emotion with sharp accuracy.
(b) Exaggerated emotion that is difficult to control.
(c) Bluntness or dulling of emotion.
(d) Quickly changing emotions.

5. Why does the narrator say that Ned and Mary are "two romantic Americans" (83)?
(a) Because they are clearly deeply in love.
(b) Because they are not being practical about their search for a house.
(c) Because neither one has any common sense.
(d) Because they tell Alida a far-fetched story about their previous home.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why are Ned and Mary so interested in living in an isolated location?

2. In Mary's mind, what is the only possible source of information about what has happened to Ned?

3. Where is Mary and Ned's house located?

4. When the story refers to "Boyne," who or what is being referred to?

5. As Mary thinks back over the events of October, she sees a figure coming toward the house again. Who is it?

Short Essay Questions

1. On the day of his disappearance, what is so frustrating for Mary about her conversation with her staff about where Ned is?

2. In the narrative present at the beginning of the story, where is Mary and what is she doing?

3. What do the Boynes tell Alida Stair about why Lyng's drawbacks are not problems from their point of view?

4. What horrifying chain of events does Mary understand once she sees Bob Elwell's picture?

5. Describe the emotional condition that Mary is in in section "IV" of the story.

6. What is the name of Ned's book, and what is the thematic significance of this title?

7. What news does Mary learn from a newspaper clipping that someone sends her in the mail, and why is she so upset by it?

8. What does Alida Stair tell the Boynes about Lyng?

9. Why does Parvis come to see Mary near the end of the story?

10. What happens with the mysterious visitor on the day that Ned disappears?

(see the answer keys)

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