1. Since this story is said to be the first detective story, and the one from which all subsequent detective stories derive, discuss some of the conventions, techniques, and devices introduced here that appear in later detective stories.

2. Poe believes that all good stories are like detective stories, in which the reader serves as a kind of detective, determining the clues and solving the mystery.

Compare the action of a reader of a story with a detective as Poe defines him.

3. In another Poe detective story "The Purloined Letter," Dupin says that a successful criminal, as well as a good detective, should combine the mental qualities of the poet and the mathematician. How does Dupin combine these qualities in "Murders in the Rue Morgue"?

4. Discuss the manner in which the story is presented, focusing on its lack of any real action...