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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 did the man find the animal again?

2. What is an epigraph?

3. Which of the following is definitely not a motive for the murders?

4. Where was the older murder victim cut?

5. Where did the person of interest obtain an animal?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the setting for the murders.

2. Why does Dupin feel disdain for the police investigation of the murders?

3. Who is the protagonist of the story? Why?

4. Describe the location of Madame L'Espanaye's daughter's body.

5. What does the epigraph at the beginning of the story mean?

6. Why does analysis please The Narrator?

7. Why might the story not be considered a work of horror?

8. What aspects of the case does Dupin feel are the most important?

9. How might this short story have been considered controversial when it was written?

10. Why did Edgar Allan Poe include an epigraph before the story begins?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What qualities of the story make it a mystery? What other genres might it fall under? Why?

Essay Topic 2

How does Poe use gruesome details to illicit a response from the reader?

Essay Topic 3

Is a short story the best way to convey this story's message? Explain why or why not, comparing it to another form such as a novel.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 639 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample