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Comprehension Questions
Page 10
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4. Define translucent.
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Page 11
5. Define placid.
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6. There is a difference between her tone of voice and his when they greet each other. How does Dahl
create this effect?
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7. Examine the fifth paragraph, which begins “For her, this was always...” What is the author’s purpose
for this paragraph?
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9. Describe two things Mary’s husband does which help warn the reader that something is different on
this day.
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Page 12
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11. How does the author use Mary’s perspective to signal something is wrong?
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12. The author doesn’t make it clear what Mr. Maloney has told Mary. What impression is created,
however?
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13. What mood is created by describing Mr. Maloney’s face being in shadow?
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Page 13
14. What does Dahl reveal about Mary Maloney that makes it plausible for her to kill her husband?
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Page 14
16. Why does Mary talk to the mirror as she is in her bedroom?
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17. Mary goes to the store to buy a few items. What is the real reason she goes there?
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Page 15
19. Why has the author written that Mary wasn’t expecting to find anything when she arrived home?
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20. How does the reader know that Mary really is saddened by what has happened?
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22. What is important about the police who arrive at the house, that adds to the suspense and danger?
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Page 16
24. Why does the author use fragments of conversation among the detectives? (two reasons)
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26. What punctuation seems to be missing? Why might the author have done this?
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27. What is the one phrase clearly stated by Jack Noonan on this page? How does it increase the suspense?
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28. What is a spanner? What is a ‘torch’? (page 17) What do these tell you about the author?
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29. How does sharing the whiskey affect the mood of the situation?
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30. How does Mary behave toward Jack Noonan when she first invites him to have dinner?
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Page 18
31. Mary is not in the kitchen with the men. How does she know they are eating the meat?
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32. One type of irony is a situation which is humorous because the audience knows something the
characters do not. How does this describe the irony at the end of the story?
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