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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. In "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle," who delivers the black hat to Holmes?

2. In "The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor," what did the bride drop while walking down the aisle?

3. In "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle," what does Holmes deduce about the owner of the hat based on the strap?

4. In "The Adventures of the Engineer's Thumb," what dangerous situation does the engineer get into?

5. What does Holmes do with the criminal at the end of "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle?"

Short Essay Questions

1. In "The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb," how does Victor escape after Stark tries to kill him?

2. What is Holder's niece's involvement with the stolen coronet?

3. What is Ryder's role in the theft of the blue carbuncle?

4. What characteristics of a Holmes mystery does "The Adventure of the Speckled Band" contain?

5. In "The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb," what does Holmes deduce the machine is used for?

6. In "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle," what does Holmes do with the criminal at the end of the story?

7. In "The Adventure of the Speckled Band," what happens to Julia?

8. In "The Adventure of the Speckled Band," why does Helen go to see Holmes?

9. In "The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb," before agreeing to work, what does Victor ask Stark?

10. How is "The Adventure of the Copper Beeches" similar to "The Adventures of the Speckled Band?"

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Holmes uses the process of deduction in solving his cases. Contrast this with more traditional detective work using inductive reasoning. What are the similarities and differences between these two types of reasoning?

Essay Topic 2

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is different from many current writers of detective fiction and also from many of his contemporaries in that his work typically doesn't have any extreme plot twists. For which stories is this not true? In these stories, describe the plot twists that occur.

Essay Topic 3

Select one of the short stories in this collection. Analyze the story's plot structure. Does it follow a traditional plot diagram?

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This section contains 907 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample