1. What is the conflict in “The Adventure of the Speckled Band”?
a. Helen dislikes her stepfather’s new wife.
b. Julia wants to move to London to live with her elderly aunt.
c. Helen thinks that she is in danger of being murdered.
d. Dr. Roylott’s wife is missing, and they have no clues as to her whereabouts.
2. What unusual pets does Dr. Roylott keep at the estate?
a. a cheetah and a baboon
b. a zebra and a lion
c. an elephant and a tiger
d. a bear and a moose
3. How does Dr. Roylott try to intimidate Holmes to keep him from helping Helen?
a. He punches him and breaks his arm.
b. He threatens to press legal charges against Holmes for trespassing.
c. He says that he will send Helen to India if Holmes interferes.
d. He bends a fireplace poker with his bare hands.
4. What happened to Helen’s mother?
a. She died in childbirth when Helen and her sister were born.
b. She was killed in a railway accident shortly after returning to England.
c. She was attacked by the cheetah and mauled to death.
d. She left her children and abusive husband and ran away with another man.
5. Why is Dr. Roylott a worthy adversary for Sherlock Holmes?
a. He is small, quiet, and mild mannered.
b. He is strong, smart, and evil.
c. He has tricked the people of the village into thinking he is kind and generous.
d. He is wealthy and has a long family history at Stoke Moran.
6. What makes Julia’s murder a mystery?
a. It was committed inside a locked room.
b. She was strangled outside of her room in the garden.
c. Her body was never found.
d. A strange knife was found at the scene of the murder.
7. Who narrates “The Adventure of the Speckled Band”?
a. Sherlock Holmes
b. Julia Stoner
c. Dr. Watson
d. Dr. Roylott
8. What did Dr. Roylott keep in the large metal safe in his bedroom?
a. his dead wife’s last will
b. the deed to Stoke Moran
c. a large shotgun
d. a swamp adder
9. What jumps out of the bushes as Holmes and Watson attempt to enter Stoke Moran?
a. a baboon
b. a man in a black robe
c. a gypsy
d. a large black dog
10. Why did Helen move into Julia’s bedroom?
a. She missed her sister and wanted to be closer to her memory.
b. Repairs were being done on her bedroom, so she had to move.
c. She was frightened to remain in her own room because it was at the far end of the house.
d. Julia’s room was larger and more spacious than Helen’s.
Part B: Multiple Choice
Questions 11–20 refer to “The Necklace.” Select the response that best completes the statement or answers the question.
11. In “The Necklace,” how does Madame Losiel react to the invitation to the party?
a. She is delighted and can’t wait to go to the party.
b. She is shocked that they would be invited to the party.
c. She is upset because she has nothing to wear.
d. She declines the invitation because she thinks they are making fun of her.
12. Where do the Loisels find the necklace after the party?
a. It was in the taxi that they took home from the party.
b. The necklace was in the pocket of Matilda’s coat.
c. It was found on the front steps of their apartment building.
d. They do not find the lost necklace.
13. Why did Mr. Loisel have money saved, which he gave to Matilda for her dress?
a. He was saving to buy a new car.
b. He was saving to buy a new gun.
c. He was saving so that they could buy a house.
d. He was saving to buy Matilda a new ring.
14. Which of the following elements of the story reflects the author’s actual life?
a. He worked for the Ministry of Education.
b. His wife also lost a valuable necklace.
c. He lived in New York City, where the story takes place.
d. His wife died from a terrible plague.
15. What does Mr. Loisel suggest that Matilda tell her friend about the necklace?
a. It was stolen by a thief on her way home from the party.
b. She loaned it to another friend from the party.
c. She lost it and cannot afford to replace it.
d. She broke the clasp and needs to have it repaired before she returns it.
16. When Madame Forestier meets Matilda at the end of the story, she says, “Oh! My poor Matilda! How you have changed—.” What is she implying?
a. Matilda has become even more beautiful than she remembered.
b. Matilda has become more sophisticated and appears to be very wealthy.
c. Matilda has aged prematurely and looks very common.
d. Matilda now has an important position with the government.
17. What is Matilda’s biggest character flaw?
a. She has too much pride.
b. She is poor and has no jewels.
c. She is generous and wants to please others.
d. She is hard working and honest.
18. Which of the following is TRUE about Mr. Loisel?
a. He genuinely cares about his wife’s happiness.
b. He is a wealthy aristocrat from a farm family.
c. He is from a prominent, wealthy family in Toulouse, France.
d. He does not care what his wife wants.
19. How long did it take the Loisels to pay back the debt?
a. 1 year
b. 5 years
c. 10 years
d. 20 years
20. Where do the Loisels live?
a. on Champs-Elysees Street
b. on Seine Street
c. on Arc de Triumph Street
d. on Martyr Street
Part C: Multiple Choice
Questions 21–30 refer to “The Ransom of Red Chief.” Select the response that best completes the statement or answers the question.
21. Who is narrating the story in “The Ransom of Red Chief?”
a. Johnny
b. Sam
c. Bill
d. Mr. Dorset
22. Who is the antagonist in the story?
a. Johnny Dorset
b. Bill Driscoll
c. Mr. Dorset
d. Sam Bradley
23. What is Bill and Sam’s motivation for the kidnapping?
a. They want revenge on Ebenezer Dorset.
b. The dislike children and want to punish the boy.
c. They need more money to pull off a land fraud scam.
d. They are hired by a wealthy man to kidnap the boy.
24. Which description best fits Mr. Dorset?
a. He is a concerned father who misses his son.
b. He is a poor farmer who can’t afford to pay the ransom.
c. He is a shrewd businessman who negotiates well.
d. He is a deeply religious minister who prays for his son’s safe return.
25. Which literary device does this quote best represent, “. . . he started to howl like a calliope and fastened himself as tight as a leech to Bill’s leg”?
a. metaphor
b. simile
c. irony
d. allusion
26. How does Bill feel about Johnny by the end of the story?
a. He is sad to see him leave because he enjoys playing with him.
b. He doesn’t care at all about Johnny because he ignores him.
c. He is impressed with Johnny’s ability to hold an adult conversation.
d. He is frightened of Johnny and can’t wait to be rid of him.
27. What is the setting of the story?
a. It takes place in rural Alabama.
b. It takes place in New York City.
c. It takes place in Paris, France.
d. It takes place in northern Minnesota.
28. When Bill says his favorite Bible character is King Herod, what literary device is O. Henry using?
a. allusion
b. metaphor
c. simile
d. irony
29. The fact that Sam and Bill sign the ransom note “Two Desperate Men” and then become two desperate men is the use of which literary device?
a. allusion
b. metaphor
c. simile
d. irony
30. The decision to pay the ransom to Mr. Dorset is an example of which kind of conflict?
a. external
b. person vs. nature
c. internal
d. physical
Part D: Matching
Match each term with the correct definition.
a. connotation
b. denotation
c. foil
d. red herring
e. theme
| 31. | some piece of irrelevant information inserted in a story to distract the readers or the characters |
| 32. | a secondary character who is important to a story because his character contrasts with the main character |
| 33. | the message about life that the author is trying to communicate to the reader through the events in the story |
| 34. | the dictionary definition of a word or its literal meaning |
| 35. | a secondary meaning for a word that goes beyond its literal meaning |
Part E: Matching
Identify each example of a literary device.
a. simile
b. metaphor
c. red herring
d. foil
e. irony
| 36. | The Loisels reducing themselves to poverty by trying to impress the wealthy in “The Necklace.” |
| 37. | “‘Tell you the truth, Bill,’ says I, ‘this little he ewe lamb has somewhat got on my nerves too. We’ll take him home, pay the ransom, and make our getaway.’” |
| 38. | Dr. Watson in “The Adventures of the Speckled Band” |
| 39. | The gypsies in “The Adventure of the Speckled Band” |
| 40. | “That boy put up a fight like a welter-weight cinnamon bear.” |
Part F: Matching
Match each quote with the correct story.
a. “The Adventure of the Speckled Band”
b. “The Necklace”
c. “The Ransom of Red Chief”
| 41. | “Because during the last few nights I have always, about three in the morning, heard a low, clear whistle.” |
| 42. | “She had neither frocks or jewels, nothing. And she loved only those things.” |
| 43. | “He gave notes, made ruinous promises, took money of usurers and the whole race of lenders.” |
| 44. | “‘I’m not as strong as I used to be,’ says old Dorset, ‘but I think I can promise you ten minutes.’” |
| 45. | “She danced with enthusiasm, with passion, intoxicated with pleasure, thinking of nothing, in the triumph of her beauty, in the glory of her success, in a kind of cloud of happiness that came of all this homage, and all this admiration, of all these awakened desires, and this victory so complete and sweet to the heart of woman.” |
Part G: Matching
Match each quote with the correct story.
a. “The Adventure of the Speckled Band”
b. “The Necklace”
c. “The Ransom of Red Chief”
| 46. | “In a fit of anger, however, caused by some robberies which had been perpetrated in the house, he beat his native butler to death and narrowly escaped a capital sentence.” |
| 47. | “Ah, me! It’s a wicked world, and when a clever man turns his brains to crime it is the worst of all.” |
| 48. | “I was only funning,” says he, sullenly. “I didn’t mean to hurt Old Hank. But what did he hit me for? I’ll behave, Snake-eye, if you won’t send me home, and if you’ll let me play the Black Scout to-day.” |
| 49. | “Exactly on time, a half-grown boy rides up the road on a bicycle, locates the pasteboard box at the foot of the fence-post, slips a folded piece of paper into it, and pedals away again back toward Summit.” |
| 50. | “Making our way among the trees, we reached the lawn, crossed it, and were about to enter through the window when out from a clump of laurel bushes there darted what seemed to be a hideous and distorted child, who threw itself upon the grass with writhing limbs and then ran swiftly across the lawn into the darkness.” |
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