Crime in Lit Unit 1 Test

Who is the author of Murders in the Rue Morgue?

Edgar Allan Poe

What is the setting of Murders in the Rue Morgue?

Paris, summer of 1840

Who is the protagonist of Murders in the Rue Morgue?

C. Auguste Dupin

What is the plot of Murders in the Rue Morgue?

Two women, Madame L'Espanaye and her daughter Camille, are brutally murdered in a locked apartment. The police cannot figure out how the killer entered or escaped. Dupin investigates using skilled observation and discovers that an orangutan committed the murders and escaped through a window.

What is the narration of Murders in the Rue Morgue?

First person, told by Dupin's unnamed companion and friend.

What is the symbol of Murders in the Rue Morgue?

The locked room represents the mysterious, seemingly impossible crime; the orangutan can represent uncontrollable violence.

Who is the author of The Lamb to the Slaughter?

Roald Dahl

What is the setting of The Lamb to the Slaughter?

The Maloney home; the exact location is not specified (maybe England).

Who is the protagonist of The Lamb to the Slaughter?

Mary Maloney

What is the plot of The Lamb to the Slaughter?

Mary is happily waiting for her husband Patrick when he tells her he is leaving her. In shock, she kills him with a frozen leg of lamb. She then creates an alibi, cooks the lamb, and feeds it to the police officers investigating the murder, destroying the evidence.

What is the narration of The Lamb to the Slaughter?

Third-person limited

What is the symbol of The Lamb to the Slaughter?

The lamb leg symbolizes Mary's role as a housewife and her seemingly harmless appearance.

Who is the author of The Landlady?

Roald Dahl

What is the setting of The Landlady?

Bath and London, England; specifically the boarding house

Who is the protagonist of The Landlady?

Billy Weaver

What is the plot of The Landlady?

Billy travels to Bath and stays at a strange boarding house run by an overly friendly landlady. He slowly realizes that the previous young men who stayed there never left and that the landlady has likely poisoned and preserved them. The story ends before Billy's fate is directly shown, but it is strongly implied that he will become her next victim.

What is the narration of The Landlady?

Third-person limited

What is the symbol of The Landlady?

The preserved/stuffed animals represent the landlady's desire to control, keep, nurture, and obsess over her victims.

Who is the author of Death by Scrabble?

Charlie Fish

What is the setting of Death by Scrabble?

The narrator's home

Who is the protagonist of Death by Scrabble?

The unnamed husband/narrator

What is the plot of Death by Scrabble?

A man who hates his wife plays Scrabble with her and discovers that words he creates on the board begin coming true in real life. He uses this power to cause bad things to happen to his wife and eventually tries to use it to kill her. However, his wife realizes what is happening and uses the Scrabble tiles to cause his death instead.

What is the narration of Death by Scrabble?

First person

What is the symbol of Death by Scrabble?

The Scrabble tiles symbolize the narrator's desire for control and power over his wife and warn of upcoming events.

Involves the use of words that are opposite to their literal meaning. Ex: "I just love it when my phone dies."

Verbal irony

Occurs when the audience or reader understands something that the characters do not know. Ex: A distressed woman cannot figure out why she has been brought into a dark room. It's a surprise party.

Dramatic irony

Involves an outcome that is opposite to the expected outcome. Ex: a post on social media commenting on how social media is a waste of time.

Situational irony

A feeling of excited anticipation that something risky or dangerous is about to happen. The intensity of suspense is proportional to risk or danger as perceived by either the story character or the reader. It is the risk or danger that distinguishes it from tension.

Suspense

Who was Poe as a writer?

Poe helped create modern detective and mystery fiction. The Murders in the Rue Morgue is widely considered the first detective story and introduced Dupin, influencing detectives like Sherlock Holmes.

Who was Poe as a person?

Poe had a difficult life. He was orphaned young, had a complicated relationship with his foster father, struggled financially, and experienced the deaths of people close to him.

Poe's first rule of crime fiction

The crime must be significant, worthy of the attention it receives.

Poe's second rule of crime fiction

The detective must be in some way a memorable character. They must be very intelligent, of course, unusually clever and observant, but also quirky, possessing perhaps some odd idiosyncrasies that distinguish them.

Poe's third rule of crime fiction

Along with an exceptional detective, there must be an outstanding opponent, a criminal clever enough to be a match for the hero. Solving the crime can't be too easy.

Poe's fourth rule of crime fiction

All suspects of the crime must be introduced early in the story

Poe's fifth rule of crime fiction

All clues the detective discovers must be made available to the reader as well.

Poe's sixth rule of crime fiction

At the end of the story, the solution must seem obvious, logical, and possible. The crime must not have resulted from accident or supernatural intervention, and the detective must be able to explain all aspects of the case in a reasonable way.

Why were murder ballads created?

To tell crime stories, entertain, spread information, make money through broadside ballads, and warn people.

Who was usually the focus of murder ballads?

Early ballads often focused on women as innocent or helpless victims, usually killed by men and punished for breaking social rules.

What types of murder ballads exist?

Drowned girls, cheating wives, pregnancy outside marriage, real crimes, revenge, domestic violence, and relationship stories.

What are some common themes of murder ballads?

Violence, love and betrayal, gender roles, violence against women, revenge, warnings, justice, and sensationalism.

The narrator is part of the story and tells it from their own perspective. They use words like "I," "me," and "my." The narrator can describe their own thoughts and experiences, but they may not know what other characters are thinking.

First person

The narrator speaks directly to another person, using "you," "your," and "yours." The listener or character being addressed feels like they are being spoken to directly.

Second person

The narrator is outside of the story and uses "he," "she," "they," etc., but the narrator only knows the thoughts and feelings of one character.

Third-person limited

The narrator is outside of the story and uses "he," "she," "they," etc., but knows everything about the characters, including their thoughts, feelings, pasts, and sometimes things happening in different places.

Third-person omniscient

Violence is used to add intensity or make the story more interesting/dramatic. It helps create excitement or shock but is not necessarily the main reason the violence happens.

Plot device

Violence moves the story forward by causing something important to happen. An act of violence can change the characters' choices or create the next event in the story.

Plot mover

Violence, especially a character's death, can represent the story reaching a major turning point where things cannot go back to how they were before. It can symbolize that something has been lost or permanently changed.

Third Plot Point Symbolism

Violence shows what the characters have to lose or what is at risk. It makes the consequences of the conflict feel more serious and shows the reader why the situation matters.

Stakes

Violence can create or increase a dispute between characters. It can be used when characters have opposing goals, disagreements, or hatred toward each other.

Conflict

Violence can provide a release of strong emotions or tension. It can give a character a way to release anger, frustration, or other emotions that have built up throughout the story.

Catharsis

Who is the author of The Adventure of the Speckled Band?

Arthur Conan Doyle

What is the setting of The Adventure of the Speckled Band?

England, including Leatherhead and Stoke Moran, April 1883

Who is the protagonist of The Adventure of the Speckled Band?

Sherlock Holmes

Who is the client in The Adventure of the Speckled Band?

Helen Stoner, who fears she will suffer the same fate as her sister Julia.

Who is the victim in The Adventure of the Speckled Band?

Julia Stoner, Helen's twin sister, who died mysteriously before her wedding.

What is the mystery/plot of The Adventure of the Speckled Band?

Helen Stoner goes to Sherlock Holmes because her twin sister, Julia, died after hearing a strange whistle and mentioning a "speckled band." Now Helen is engaged and must sleep in Julia's old room. Holmes finds a fake bell rope, a vent connecting the rooms, a fixed bed, and a safe. He realizes Dr. Roylott is using a venomous snake to kill the sisters. The snake travels through the vent and bell rope, then Roylott calls it back with a whistle. Holmes stops the snake from killing Helen. The "speckled band" is the snake.

What is the narration in The Adventure of the Speckled Band?

First person, narrated by Dr. Watson.

What is the symbol in The Adventure of the Speckled Band?

The speckled snake represents danger, fear, hidden evil, stealth, and secrets.

What are some important clues in The Adventure of the Speckled Band?

Whistle, metallic sound, speckled band, ventilator, fake bell rope, fixed bed, safe, milk, whipcord, chair, and Roylott's Indian animals.

What social movements influenced crime fiction in the 1960s-70s?

Women's Movement (1848-1920), Civil Rights Movement (1950s-60s), and Gay Rights Movement (1960s-70s). They challenged stereotypes and pushed crime fiction to reconsider women's roles.