Home › Functional Skills English Level 2 › English › Reading Comprehension: Short Fiction › Read these lines: "Our visitor bore every mark o…
Read these lines: "Our visitor bore every mark of being an average commonplace British tradesman, obese, pompous, and slow. He wore rather baggy grey shepherd's check trousers, a not over-clean black frock-coat, unbuttoned in the front, and a drab waistcoat with a heavy brassy Albert chain." How is the visitor presented?
AAs an ordinary tradesman of no special note
BAs a rich man who dresses down on purpose
CAs a young man eager to make an impression
DAs a stranger hiding his real trade with care
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: A. As an ordinary tradesman of no special note
1. The first sentence calls him average and commonplace, which sets the whole picture.
2. The clothing that follows is baggy, not over-clean and drab, all words for the unremarkable.
3. Even the watch chain is brassy rather than gold, so no wealth is on show.
4. So he is drawn as an ordinary tradesman, option A.
5. The idea of a man hiding his trade is the trap, but every detail here points outward rather than concealing anything.
_Source: Arthur Conan Doyle, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1892), The Red-Headed League_
Related questions
Read these lines: "And the man who wrote the note is a German. Do you note the peculiar coRead these lines: "It read in this fashion: THE RED-HEADED LEAGUE IS DISSOLVED. We surveyeRead these lines about the terms of a post: "Well, you have to be in the office, or at leaRead these lines: "I used to be able to keep two assistants, but now I only keep one; and Read these lines: "With that he seized my hair in both his hands, and tugged until I yelleRead these lines about an assistant: "Never was such a fellow for photography. Snapping awRead these lines from a newspaper notice: "There is now another vacancy open which entitleRead these closing lines: "And that was how a great scandal threatened to affect the kingd