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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 the stranger say the skipper of the Sephora's wife is, presently?

2. Who forms a special bond almost instantly?

3. What did Legatt do with the articles he removed while swimming in the sea?

4. To what animal does the captain compare the man after making eye contact?

5. How far is the Sephora from the nearest real land when the stranger is relating his story to the captain?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the captain describe his own situation aboard the unnamed ship in speaking to the stranger?

2. Why is it more important than ever that the crew not know about Legatt being on board after the skipper leaves?

3. What does the captain discuss after the informal meeting with his main officers? Why is this significant?

4. Where is Legatt discovered by the crew of the Sephora with the murdered man? What happens when they found?

5. What does Legatt do once he is in the water? Why?

6. When and why does the captain turn the ship to open sea?

7. What does the captain believe his first mate would think were he to see him speaking with the stranger?

8. To what conclusion does the captain's mind first leap when he sees the naked body in the water, and why?

9. Describe the difference between what the captain feels when commanding the ship forward for the first time versus how he should be feeling.

10. What is significant about the realization the captain has while planning below decks with Leggatt as to how close the ship will come to the island?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

This story is written in the first person from the point of view of the ship's captain. What are the other points of view an author can use to tell a story? Identify and explain them. Also, explain how Joseph Conrad uses the first person point of view to help tell his story. How would the story have changed if he would have used another point of view?

Essay Topic 2

A constant and recurring if not directly expressed conflict in the story is between the person's exterior conduct and his interior consciousness. This psychosomatic struggle constantly demonstrates itself in the struggles of the captain and Leggatt as they maneuver to maintain their secret. Compose an essay analyzing these struggles and explicate their significance in discerning character strengths and weaknesses. How do the characters compose themselves under psychological duress? What emotions do the two men have to struggle against? In what situations do the emotions get the better of them? How do they conquer their emotions and strain?

Essay Topic 3

When the captain is on deck giving orders for the first time to move the boat forward, he remarks about the sensations of a man who is feeling a ship move under his command for the very first time. He then remarks, "I was not wholly alone with my command; for there was that stranger in my cabin. Or rather, I was not completely and wholly with her. Part of me was absent. That mental feeling of being in two places at once affected me physically as if the mood of secrecy had penetrated my very soul." What does this comment mean? What sentiments is the author trying to portray?

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