Summer Reading Flashcards
What is the typical hero of film noir?
he is alienated from conventional society , he works in opposition to the police or is even pursued by the police , and he is often psychologically wounded and morally ambiguous
What is hard-boiled fiction?
a tough, unsentimental style of American crime writing that brought a new tone of earthy realism or naturalism to the field of detective fiction.
Who is Miles Archer? Describe.
Miles Archer is Sam Spades partner, he is chunky
Who decides to follow Floyd Thursby? Why?
Miles follows Floyd because Wonderly says shes would like someone to help her find the man
Why did Tom Polhaus telephone Sam Spade early in the novel?
He is a cop who told Spade that Miles was shot
Describe Lt. Dundy’s demeanor
Grumpy, suspicious , aggressive and has bad attitude toward Spade
Whom does Mrs. Archer suspect killed her husband ?
Spade because she knew that Spade and her were having an affair
What did the person who went to visit Mrs. Archer the night of her husband’s death notice?
Effie noticed that her clothes were still warm which meant she had recently been outside
What is Miss Wonderly’s real name? What is her other alias?
Miss Wonderly’s real name is Brigade Oshaughnessy and her alias is leblanc
Who is Sid Wise?
Spades lawyer
What is Cairo looking for? What offer does he make Spade?
He is looking for the black falcon , he offers 5k for the falcon
What does Cairo do after Sam gives him back the pistol the 1st time?
searches his office
How does Sam explain the presence of Brigid and Cairo in his apartment to Dundy and Polhaus?
they were struggling over the gun and he fell over the carpet and hit his head
After Cairo, Dundy, and Polhaus leave, how does Sam convince Brigid to stay? What lie does he feed her?
That the kid was still outside watching the house
How does Sam explain his absence in the morning while Brigid was sleeping in his apartment?
He went to get breakfast
How does the youth act when Sam approaches him in the lobby on the Hotel Belvedere?
He was aggressive to him
Who shot Thursby? Miles?
Wilmer (youth) shot Thursby and Brigade shot Miles
What ship was the falcon expected to be on ? Who was the captain ?
La Paloma and Jacoby
Why is Effie worried when Sam gets to the office after having visited with Gutman and then Wise?
HE is bruised and Brigade never showed up for her protection
Why was the falcon painted black?
to hide all its precious jewels
Whom does Effie see to verify the history of the falcon ?
her cousin
What part of The Call , found in Cairo’s room , is missing ?
the part with the ship arrival times
At lunch, what does Sam find out from Polhaus about Thursby’s Chicago background ?
Thursbys bodyguard was the bodyguard of a gangster Dixie
Since when has Gutman been looking for the falcon?
17 years
Who is Wilmer?
The youth, the young kid
What does Sam want with Wilmer in the deal he makes with Gutman?
He wants wilmer to be the fall guy
Who brings the falcon to the apartment ?
Effie
Whom does Brigid say tricked them with a fake falcon ?
Kimidolf
What point of view was was the novel written in?
3rd person omniscient
Who is the author ?
Dashiel Hammet
Why does the narrator go to Nirdlinger’s at the opening of the novel ?
to sell insurance and the narrator is Walter Huff
What does the narrator nickname the Nirdlinger House ?
the house of death
What department is Keyes the head of ?
Claims
What do the narrator and Mrs. Nirdlinger drink toogether when the narrator goes to visit?
tea and the tea party turns to a murder party
What is Mrs. Nirdlingers name?
Phyllis
How did Mrs. Nirdlinger think of killing her husband initially?
when he was out of his job, fall in the pool
When the narrator gives lola a ride to the drugstore, who does she meet ? Why are they meeting in secret?
Neno Sechetti and because her dad banned her from seeing him
What does sachetti put down as collateral for his loan?
his car and he is asking for a loan for medical school
What type of policy does Mrs. Nirdlinger take out on her husband. How does Mr. Nirdlinger sign the papers ?
Accidental death policy and walter tricks him think that he has to sign 2 copies
Why does Mrs. Nirdlinger tell the narrator that the Palo Alto trip is off?
because Mr. Nirdlingers leg broke (the Palo Alto trip is a trip to his class reunion)
How does Mr. Nirdlinger die?
Walter snaps his neck with a crutch
How does the narrator get to the train station?
Phyllis takes him and he has the same outfit as Mr. Nirdlinger with the crutches to make people think he is Mr. Nirdlinger
How does the narrator get rid of the guy standing at the back of the train?
he asks him to get the bag for him
Why does Mrs. Nirdlinger take so long to meet the narrator at the train tracks?
because she had to take the body by herself
Whats nortons theory about Mr. Nirdlingers death?
suicide
What is keyes theory about Mr. Nirdlingers death?
murder
What does the expression “on the up and up” mean?
that everything’s alright
Recount the death of Lolas mother
Lola took forever to take her mother to the hospital and she got herself sick and basically got her mom killed
What does lola catch Mrs. Nirdlinger ordering before her husbands death?
a black dress
Where is Mrs. Nirdlinger supposed to meet the narrator at night?
near the park in front of the drugstore
What is “Gun Play”?
the play Walter goes to as an alibi
What “saved” the narrator from the gunshot?
the program from the play ,” “Gun Play” the play saved him”
How did Mrs. Nirdlinger affect Sachettis father ?
She ruined his life because she was a nurse at this hospital, and all of a sudden patients started dying in his hospital and she was killing innocent people to collect money
Whom does the narrator see on the ship at the end?
Phyllis and the decide to jump of the boat into the shark infested water (suicide)
What point of view is this novel written in? (Double Indemnity)
First person
