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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. Whose handwriting do the officials at Maidstone Gaol decide is on the French paper Hilary Thorpe finds in the church belfry?

2. Why do Mary Thoday and Will Thoday leave town?

3. What kind of car does Lord Peter drive?

4. What does Emily do to the object from which Lord Peter hopes to get fingerprints?

5. Who provides Jeff Deacon with food while he's imprisoned in the church bellchamber?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Will Thoday initially believe Deacon has returned to Fenchurch St. Paul and what is the actual reason Deacon has returned?

2. How does Lord Peter find the stolen emeralds?

3. How does Mary Thoday react when Lord Peter shows her the cipher, and what does her reaction indicate?

4. To whom does Lady Wilbraham leave her money when she dies and for what is she trying to atone in how she bequeaths her wealth?

5. How does Lady Wilbraham respond when her stolen emeralds are found?

6. What surprising news is revealed about Deacon's murder when James and Will Thoday are left alone in a room with a hidden microphone?

7. How does Lord Peter solve the mystery of Deacon's death and what does the cause of Deacon's death turn out to be?

8. Why do Will and Mary Thoday have to remarry each other?

9. What aspect of the mystery of Jeff Deacon's death is Lord Peter still unable to solve one year after first becoming involved in the puzzle?

10. Who mutilates Deacon's body after his death and for what reason is the corpse mutilated?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Each chapter in The Nine Tailors begins with an epigraph. Discuss the author's technique of using epigraphs to introduce her chapters. How do the epigraphs relate to the chapters they introduce? What do you think Dorothy L. Sayers intends to convey or accomplish through this technique? Cite examples from the text to support your arguments.

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast any three female characters in the novel. Cite examples from the text to support your arguments.

Essay Topic 3

The Nine Tailors takes place in a small English village during the 1920's. Discuss how the geographical and chronological setting affect the story and how the characters and story might differ if Dorothy L. Sayers had set the novel in the United States during the 1940's instead. Cite examples from the text to support your arguments.

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