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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. How much money does Marlowe ask for as a retainer?

2. What clue does Marlowe see that Lavery was up at Little Fawn Lake?

3. What is Lavery's arm like when Marlowe pulls at it?

4. What was the detective who Mrs. Almore's parents hired to investigate her death sent to jail for?

5. After finding the gold heart, who does Marlowe speculate killed Muriel?

Short Essay Questions

1. What gives Marlowe a scare while he is searching the Chesses' cabin?

2. What encounter did Kingsley have, that made him worried about his wife?

3. What reason does Sheriff Patton give why Bill might have stayed in town if he killed his wife?

4. What excuse does Bill Chess give for his erratic behavior?

5. How does Marlowe know the name of the person who lives across the street from Lavery?

6. What things does Marlowe list that might have happened to Kingsley's wife?

7. How does Miss Fromsett describe Florence Almore?

8. Where do Marlowe and Birdie go to talk?

9. How would you characterize the way that Miss Fromsett treats Marlowe?

10. What does Marlowe say that they'll have to do to get financial information about Kingsley's wife?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The story behind The Lady in the Lake is one of relationships: husbands and wives, lovers, and jealous rivals. Discuss relationships in the novel.

1) What do men and women want from relationships in the novel?

2) Discuss Lavery's relationships. Who is Lavery? What do women want from him? What does Lavery expect out of relationships?

3) Do romantic relationships lead to happiness in the novel? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

The Lady in the Lake has multiple antagonists who have different goals. Discuss the antagonists in the novel.

1) What antagonists in the novel are obvious and what antagonists are hidden? How do multiple antagonists function in the genre to create mystery and conflict?

2) Discuss Degarmo and Mildred Haviland as antagonists. What different roles do they fill?

3) How do the police function as antagonists?

Essay Topic 3

The Lady in the Lake is written in the first person narrative point of view, from the perspective of Marlowe. Discuss the novel's point of view.

1) Why does the author choose the first person narrative point of view? Why is the story told from Marlowe's perspective?

2) What does Marlowe reveal to the reader, as narrator, and when? What does Marlowe keep hidden from the reader, though he may know it himself?

3) How does the first person narration affect the tone of the novel? How is it appropriate to the genre?

(see the answer keys)

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