View a FREE sample

This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Mary take from her husband when he first arrives home in “Lamb to the Slaughter”?
(a) His shoes
(b) His tie
(c) His coat
(d) His belt

2. Mary’s feelings for her husband in the beginning of the story are defined in which way?
(a) Mary adores her husband
(b) Mary detests her husband
(c) Mary is enraged at her husband
(d) Mary fears her husband

3. What word from the story refers to keen mental suffering or distress over affliction or loss?
(a) Frantic
(b) Wonder
(c) Astonishment
(d) Grief

4. Where does Mary tell the police officer on the phone that Patrick is when she calls them?
(a) Slumped over the sofa
(b) In his chair
(c) Lying on the floor
(d) On the stairs

5. As the search goes on, Mary knows that there are other policemen searching where?
(a) At the grocery store
(b) In the garden around the house
(c) At her mother’s house
(d) In the cellar and attic

6. Where was “Lamb to the Slaughter” first published?
(a) New York Magazine
(b) Harper’s Magazine
(c) Newsweek
(d) Reader’s Digest

7. Mary is said to be the wife of what after killing her husband?
(a) A gentleman
(b) A detective
(c) A saint
(d) A philanthropist

8. What color is Patrick’s second drink that he makes for himself described as?
(a) Light brown
(b) Light crimson
(c) Black
(d) Dark amber

9. How many policemen are left in Mary’s house after they’ve all had drinks?
(a) 5
(b) 4
(c) 3
(d) 1

10. What does Mary take when she runs downstairs after rehearsing in her room?
(a) Her hat
(b) Her shoes
(c) Her coat
(d) Her purse

11. What does Mary attempt to do in the bedroom after killing Patrick?
(a) Cry
(b) Scream
(c) Call her mother
(d) Smile

12. All of Mary’s movements are said to be what, after Patrick has told her his story in “Lamb to the Slaughter”?
(a) Stilted
(b) Monotonous
(c) Automatic
(d) Ominous

13. Mary explains that she hasn’t made any supper for what reason in “Lamb to the Slaughter”?
(a) She is very sick
(b) They are out of food
(c) They eat out on Thursdays
(d) They are eating at the neighbor’s house

14. How is the room that Mary waits in described in the opening of “Lamb to the Slaughter”?
(a) Cold and dirty
(b) Dark but dirty
(c) Dark but clean
(d) Warm and clean

15. What happens to the murder weapon in “Lamb to the Slaughter”?
(a) A dog runs off with it
(b) The policemen eat it
(c) It gets buried in the yard
(d) It remains hidden in the basement

Short Answer Questions

1. From what narrative tense is “Lamb to the Slaughter” related?

2. What literary style that applies to “Lamb to the Slaughter” refers to the use of the grotesque, morbid, or absurd for darkly comic purposes?

3. How long does Patrick remain standing before he crashes to the carpet?

4. When Sergeant Noonan offers to take Mary to another house for the night, she responds that she “didn’t feel like she could move even” how much “at the moment”?

5. How many police officers initially arrive after Mary calls the police?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 504 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample