The Demon Lover Study Guide
1. What is a ghost story?
2. A ghost story is characterized by these three elements:
a.
b.
c.
3. Read the first 5 paragraph of The Demon Lover. What is your reaction to the setting and opening exposition?
4. How does the author prepare the reader for the suggestion that there is something supernatural about the letter?
5. What does Mrs. Drover unexpectedly discover in her vacant house?
6. Why is she upset by this discovery?
7. In what two ways might Kathleen’s fiancé’s remarks may be interpreted? (p1034-1035)
8. Before returning to the war, what had Mrs. Drover’s fiancé promised her?
9. What happens to Kathleen’s fiancé after he returns to war?
10. What does Mrs. Drover struggle to avoid?
11. Do you feel sympathetic to Mrs. Drover? Why or why not?
12. Identify three points at which Mrs. Drover feels that she is being watched and describe what each moment adds to the story.
a.
b.
13. What does this feeling suggest about her guilt toward her finance?
14. Identify three references to “traces”, marks left behind by objects or actions.
a.
b.
c.
