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The Purloined Letter Trivia Quiz

'The Purloined Letter' is considered to be one of the first detective stories in American literature. Test your knowledge of Poe's classic with this quiz. Best of luck!

A multiple-choice quiz by Triviaballer. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
Triviaballer

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
244,450

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
7 / 10

Plays
999

Last 3 plays: Guest 152 (6/10), Guest 42 (4/10), Guest 47 (4/10).

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. "The Purloined Letter" is one of the early classics of American literature and it is one of the United States' first mystery stories. In what year was this classic by Edgar Allan Poe first published? Hint

1830

1844

1855

1838

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Question 2 of 10

2. The story opens with a quote from the Roman philosopher Lucius Annaeus Seneca (Seneca the Younger). What does the opening "Nil sapientiae odiosius acumine nimio." roughly translate to? Hint

Nothing is achieved by the unreasonable deceit of others.

Nothing is loathed more by detectives than incompetent authorities.

Nothing is more hateful to wisdom than excessive cleverness.

Nothing is more desirable than the ability to fool one's enemies.

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Question 3 of 10

3. What was the name of the Prefect of the Parisian police who called upon C. Auguste Dupin to assist in finding the purloined letter? Hint

Monsieur G

Francois Lafete

Pierre Gusteau

Frederick St. Germain

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Question 4 of 10

4. What was the name of the individual that purloined the letter? Hint

President K

Minister D

Madame X

Captain T

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Question 5 of 10

5. Why was the Parisian police Prefect able to search the thief's house while he was away? Hint

He hired a cleaning lady to search the premises while on the job.

He fed the guard dogs biscuits.

His servants were always drunk.

He snuck in through an air vent.

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Question 6 of 10

6. How did the Parisian police determine that the thief's chairs did not hold the purloined letter? Hint

They disassembled and reassembled all the chairs.

They examined the chairs' jointings with a powerful microscope.

They drilled a hole in each chair and inserted a pipette to search for the letter.

They scanned the chair for recent fingerprints and concluded that they had not been in use.

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Question 7 of 10

7. Which of the following did Dupin not ask about being searched after being informed about the chairs? Hint

Light fixtures

Beds

Mirrors

Carpets

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Question 8 of 10

8. Which of the following was not part of the search of the theft's books? Hint

They measured the thickness of every book cover.

They probed the binders longitudinally with needles.

They examined the books at eye level with a blue light for fingerprints.

They leafed through every page of every book.

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Question 9 of 10

9. What did Dupin recommend the Parisian police to do after being told of how the premises was searched? Hint

To increase the amount of the reward for the letter's retrieval.

To search the premises again.

To apprehend the thief.

To freeze the thief's assets.

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Question 10 of 10

10. The police Prefect returned to Dupin a month later and told him that the reward had been increased. Which of the following did Dupin not do after hearing this? Hint

He told the prefect to write him a check.

He gave the letter to the prefect.

He described how he found the letter.

He contacted the thief and told him they had found the letter.

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Most Recent Scores

Dec 09 2024 : Guest 152: 6/10
Dec 04 2024 : Guest 42: 4/10
Dec 03 2024 : Guest 47: 4/10
Nov 28 2024 : hellobion: 10/10
Nov 25 2024 : Guest 169: 6/10
Nov 25 2024 : Guest 110: 3/10
Nov 19 2024 : Guest 157: 8/10
Nov 16 2024 : Guest 152: 3/10

Score Distribution

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

Answer: 1844

'The Purloined Letter' was first published in 'The Gift: A Christmas and New Year's Present' for 1844.

2. The story opens with a quote from the Roman philosopher Lucius Annaeus Seneca (Seneca the Younger). What does the opening "Nil sapientiae odiosius acumine nimio." roughly translate to?

Answer: Nothing is more hateful to wisdom than excessive cleverness.

Unless you are fluent in Latin, this opening quote probably has little meaning the first time you read it. The quote likely refers to the authorities' seemingly "clever" search for the letter that ended up being unsuccessful.

3. What was the name of the Prefect of the Parisian police who called upon C. Auguste Dupin to assist in finding the purloined letter?

Answer: Monsieur G

The narrator does not seem to have a very high opinion of Monsieur G whom he believes "called everything odd that was beyond his comprehension".

4. What was the name of the individual that purloined the letter?

Answer: Minister D

The police Prefect told Dupin that it was known that Minister D stole the letter and replaced it with another letter.

5. Why was the Parisian police Prefect able to search the thief's house while he was away?

Answer: His servants were always drunk.

The Prefect mentioned to Dupin and the narrator that he had been searching the house for three months but had still not found the purloined letter.

6. How did the Parisian police determine that the thief's chairs did not hold the purloined letter?

Answer: They examined the chairs' jointings with a powerful microscope.

The Prefect told Dupin and the narrator that "a single grain of dust would have been as obvious as an apple".

7. Which of the following did Dupin not ask about being searched after being informed about the chairs?

Answer: Light fixtures

Dupin also asked how the curtains and the area between the boards and plates were searched. In addition to meticulously searching the house, the police searched the two adjoining houses.

8. Which of the following was not part of the search of the theft's books?

Answer: They examined the books at eye level with a blue light for fingerprints.

The officers were not content by merely shaking the books out but instead went to these excessive measures. They also opened every package and parcel in the house.

9. What did Dupin recommend the Parisian police to do after being told of how the premises was searched?

Answer: To search the premises again.

The Prefect thought this was a bad idea and he made the following comment: "I am not more sure that I breathe than I am that the letter is not at the hotel".

10. The police Prefect returned to Dupin a month later and told him that the reward had been increased. Which of the following did Dupin not do after hearing this?

Answer: He contacted the thief and told him they had found the letter.

The reward had been increased to fifty thousand francs. The Prefect was so overjoyed at finding the letter that he did not say a word to Dupin before leaving the room.

Source: Author Triviaballer

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor MotherGoose before going online.
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Referenced Topics

Literature Vocabulary Famous Quotes Names Christmas Latin Language American Literature Edgar Allan Poe Blue Edgar Allan Poe Curtain

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