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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 Edmund figures out where his sister is, who accompanies him to rescue her?
(a) Edmund's mother.
(b) Throck.
(c) Poe.
(d) No one.

2. What does Edmund buy at the tavern for himself and his mother?
(a) Candles and matches.
(b) A meat pie.
(c) A newspaper.
(d) Bread.

3. Given what he learns at the portrait studio, what does Dupin come to believe?
(a) Edmund's mother is still alive.
(b) Edmund's aunt is still alive.
(c) Either Edmund's aunt or his mother is still alive.
(d) Both Edmund's aunt and his mother are dead.

4. How does Edmund escape his pursuer at the docks?
(a) By shouting out.
(b) By jumping into the harbor and swimming away.
(c) By crawling along the underside of a wharf.
(d) By pretending to have a weapon.

5. What does Poe's style of courting Mrs. Whitman reflect?
(a) His fear of failure.
(b) His fierce determination.
(c) His careful weighing of his options.
(d) His lack of inner drive.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Mrs. Whitman ask Dupin to do in front of her guests?

2. At the docks, who is Edmund pursued by?

3. What is in the prologue of Poe's story?

4. What does Poe tell Edmund about his sister at the end of the story?

5. What is lost from the ship besides the two men aboard?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the turning point Edmund experiences in Chapter 14?

2. What can the reader learn about the real-life Poe in this novel?

3. What is the symbolism in Chapter 19 of Edmund's grabbing Poe's story and threatening to rip it up if Poe does not help him?

4. What is the significance, in Chapter 16, of Edmund throwing himself at a man with a gun?

5. Why do you think Dupin decides that his work is done after summing up the details of the solved mystery in Chapter 17?

6. What is the symbolism in Chapter 19 of Poe's belief upon seeing Edmund and his mother that his characters have come to life?

7. Why do you think Poe drops the remainder of his story on the ground before walking away from Edward for the last time?

8. Why do you think the author has Edmund's mother demand both the divorce and her money, rather than just being satisfied with a divorce, when she first encounters her husband?

9. Do you think Poe is able to make up his own mind whether or not to root for Edmund's happiness, or does his nature force him to hope for the worst?

10. Do you think Poe is a coward for giving up on marrying Helen because, as he says, too many timid people feel threatened by his power as a writer?

(see the answer keys)

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