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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. When asked, what is it that the secretary of state is told that makes it unnecessary to incarcerate the person he is concerned about?

2. What does Winnie explain to Stevie about the purpose of the police when he states they should do something for the poor?

3. When Mrs. Verloc looked back into the parlor where Mr. Verloc was dead, how did he appear to her?

4. What does Mr. Verloc tell his wife when he finds her right after Heat leaves their home?

5. What concern does the secretary of state express when briefed by the assistant commissioner regarding his suspect of the Greenwich Park explosion?

Short Essay Questions

1. When Ossipon jumps from the moving train and abandons Mrs. Verloc with no funds, what does he tell the railway workers who gather around him?

2. What is described as being what Mrs. Verloc fears most in the beginning of Chapter 12?

3. Where does the assistant commissioner go for his evening meal and what catches his attention?

4. What exchange takes place between Mr. and Mrs. Verloc on the afternoon he returns from his out-of-country trip, when he announces he is interested in taking a walk?

5. Identify the individual the assistant commissioner is speaking with at the close of Chapter 10 and what says that might be a quote from his own subordinate.

6. Describe what is compared to the sound of an insane clock at the conclusion of Chapter 11?

7. What is the opening scene of Chapter 11once Chief Inspector Heat has departed the Verloc home?

8. What does Mrs. Verloc's sibling do when a cab driver whips his horse on the ride over to the charity home? Why does her sibling reaction in this way?

9. What is Mr. Verloc's disposition at the beginning of Chapter 9?

10. What does the assistant commissioner do upon completion of his meeting with Sir Ethelred, and what does he encounter?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Adolf Verloc is found to be a French spy by the second chapter. But it is not until Chapter 6 that the reader learns he has also been an informant for Chief Inspector Heat. By the end of Chapter 5 it is know that the bomb victim was not Heat as thought possible in Chapter 4, but who is it then? Examine how Conrad uses surprise and secrecy throughout his novel.

Essay Topic 2

Some of the characters in Conrad's novel are not whom they initially seem to be. Some are harder than they might have at first appeared, others not quite as cold or callous. Take four characters and examine how they are different by the end of the tale than at first encountered. Describe the individual's outlook and view of the world and what motivates them to change.

Essay Topic 3

Examine the relationship between Mr. and Mrs. Verloc. What motivates each of them to get married? Why is it they stay together? What are the ironies of their relationship? Examine their marriage coming apart at the death of Stevie.

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