View a FREE sample

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

Short Answer Questions

1. In the prologue, where is the children's mother?

2. When Edmund and Mrs. Whitman first meet, where does Mrs. Whitman tell Edmund to have Dupin meet her?

3. When Edmund enters his room with the food for himself and his sister, what state is his sister in?

4. In Dupin and Throck's first meeting, what does Throck tell Dupin he has been hired to do?

5. What is the only item missing after Edmund's room is ransacked?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do you think is Dupin's primary motivation for helping Edmund?

2. Based on the prologue, what do you think is the author's opinion of Poe as a writer?

3. When Edmund sees Dupin asleep, surrounded by empty liquor bottles, in Chapter Three, what conflict does it bring about it Edmund's thinking?

4. What can the reader deduce about the real-life Poe from part one of the novel?

5. What did Edgar Allan Poe do in his mystery stories that no one had done before, and how does this impact future mystery writers?

6. What is the significance of Edmund's direct accusation, in Chapter Nine, that Dupin has abandoned him?

7. Why do you think Edmund continues to trust Dupin, even after reading in Dupin's notebook in Chapter Nine that Dupin thinks his story should end with Sis' death?

8. Why do you think the author decided to set up a mystery in the style of Edgar Allan Poe?

9. Why do you think Poe chooses to go by the name of his fictional detective?

10. How does the setting reflect Edmund's emotional state?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Once the central conflict of Sis's disappearance is resolved, do you characterize Poe's dissatisfaction with it as a twist? Poe makes it clear to Edmund that he believes he can give Sis immortality in his story. Is Poe's lack of reaction to Sis's recovery to be expected, or is it a surprise that adds color and depth to the final moments of the story?

Essay Topic 2

How do you characterize Dupin/Poe's crime-solving methods? Do you think they are effective? Use specific details from the novel to support your answer.

Essay Topic 3

What are the various ways in which real life and fiction intermingle in this story? What do you think the author is saying about the nature of realism and fantasy?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 936 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample