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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where does Spade say Brigid can talk to Cairo?

2. Which hotel has Miss Wonderly left a forwarding address?

3. Why did Thursby and Brigid go to San Francisco?

4. Who has called Spade at his office?

5. What does Spade say he does not have?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Hammett use visual images in the novel?

2. What does Spade tell Polhaus and Dundy at the end of the seventh chapter?

3. Describe the man's entrance into Spade's office at the end of the fifteenth chapter?

4. What has happened to Miss Wonderly's sister?

5. What is Spade's relationship with the three women he has met so far in the novel?

6. What is Spade's excuse for Cairo and Brigid's behavior at the beginning of the eighth chapter?

7. What do the police see when they enter Spade's apartment in the eighth chapter?

8. Describe the game going on between Brigid and Spade?

9. What does Spade work out about Miss Wonderly in the second chapter?

10. How was the falcon made?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Hammett lived in San Francisco and worked in a detective agency, adhering to the rule, writers should always write about what they know. Do you think it is obvious that Hammett knows his subject? What difference do you think it makes to the story? Are there any moments where you think Hammett does not portray a character or setting so well? What affect does it have on the story?

Essay Topic 2

Identify the main themes of the story. Why do you think these themes are so important to the story? How does Hammett use character and setting to express these themes?

Essay Topic 3

In 1942 The Maltese Falcon was made into a famous film noir film starring Humphrey Bogart and directed by John Huston. Why do you think the themes and ideas in the book were still relevant ten years later? Do you think the ideas are timeless and universal? What is it about the novel that enabled it to be made into one of the finest examples of film noir?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 762 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample