The Count of Monte Cristo, Chapter 81. The Room of the Retired Baker. quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. On what occasion does Andrea Cavalcanti visit Danglars at the beginning of Chapter 81?

   • The morning after a grand ball at the Danglars household
   • Correct answer: The evening after the Count of Morcerf's rejection as a suitor for Eugénie
   • The day Monte Cristo formally introduces Andrea to Parisian society
   • After Andrea receives a letter from his supposed father Marquis Cavalcanti

   The chapter opens on the same evening Morcerf was rejected by Danglars. Andrea arrives immediately to propose in his place, seizing the opportunity created by Morcerf's disgrace.

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2. 2

   Question 2. What annual income does Andrea claim he will receive from his father upon marriage?

   • 50,000 livres per annum
   • 100,000 livres per annum
   • Correct answer: 150,000 livres per annum
   • 200,000 livres per annum

   Andrea states his father left a letter promising 150,000 livres per annum from the day he married, which he describes as roughly a quarter of his father's total revenue.

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3. 3

   Question 3. Under what name is Caderousse living in his Rue Menilmontant lodgings?

   • Monsieur Bertuccio
   • Monsieur Benedetto
   • Correct answer: Monsieur Pailletin
   • Monsieur Jacopo

   The fruiteress opposite identifies him as Monsieur Pailletin, described as a retired baker, which is the alias Caderousse uses to conceal his criminal past.

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4. 4

   Question 4. Why does Caderousse refuse the gold coins Andrea offers as his monthly allowance?

   • He dislikes foreign currency and prefers French bills
   • Correct answer: He fears someone will track his unusual income if he tries to exchange them
   • He wants a bank draft instead of cash
   • He is testing whether Andrea has access to silver from Monte Cristo's house

   Caderousse explains that anyone changing gold coins would arouse suspicion and demand to know which farmer paid rent in gold. He insists on ordinary silver five-franc pieces that anyone might possess.

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5. 5

   Question 5. On which floor of Monte Cristo's Champs-Élysées house is the mahogany secretary located?

   • The ground floor, near the dining room
   • Correct answer: The first floor, in the dressing-room
   • The second floor, in the count's private study
   • The basement, adjacent to the wine cellar

   Andrea tells Caderousse the secretary is in the dressing-room on the first floor, adjacent to the bedroom, and that the key is always left in it.

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6. 6

   Question 6. What does Caderousse do to verify the diamond ring is genuine?

   • He bites it to check for softness
   • He holds it up to a candle flame
   • Correct answer: He presses it against the window glass to see if it cuts
   • He weighs it on a small scale

   Caderousse goes to the window and touches the glass with the stone. A real diamond cuts glass; when it does, he admits with a mock Latin confession — 'Confiteor' — that he was mistaken about it being false.

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7. 7

   Question 7. What does Caderousse mean when he says he will be Andrea's 'best friend' in the chapter's closing line?

   • He will vouch for Andrea's identity to Danglars
   • He will introduce Andrea to influential Parisian society
   • Correct answer: He will burgle Monte Cristo's house to hasten Andrea's inheritance
   • He will expose Danglars' fraud to help Andrea's marriage

   After studying the floor plan Andrea drew, Caderousse muses that 'he who hastens the day when he can touch his five hundred thousand will not be his worst friend' — signaling he plans to rob Monte Cristo to trigger or accelerate Andrea's claimed inheritance.

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8. 8

   Question 8. What monthly allowance does Caderousse extort from Andrea by the end of their breakfast meeting?

   • 200 francs
   • 300 francs
   • 400 francs
   • Correct answer: 500 francs

   Caderousse begins by receiving 200 francs per month. During the chapter he pressures Andrea into raising the allowance to 500 francs per month, claiming he wants to hire a housekeeper.

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9. 9

   Question 9. Which of these events actually happen in Chapter 81?

   • Danglars agrees to the marriage proposal from Andrea Cavalcanti.

     Happened

   • Caderousse gives back the diamond ring after testing it.

     Didn't happen

   • Andrea borrows his servant Pierre's livery to visit Caderousse in disguise.

     Happened

   • Monte Cristo arrives at Caderousse's lodgings and confronts both men.

     Didn't happen

   • Andrea draws a floor plan of Monte Cristo's house at Caderousse's request.

     Happened

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10. 10

    Question 10. Which details about Monte Cristo's house does Andrea reveal to Caderousse in Chapter 81?

    • The house stands between a courtyard and a garden on the Champs-Élysées.

      Happened

    • There is a guard dog loose in the yard every night.

      Didn't happen

    • The servants sleep in rooms above the coach-house, not inside the main house.

      Happened

    • The count keeps the shutters on his large windows permanently closed.

      Didn't happen

    • Monte Cristo plans to be away at Auteuil the very next day.

      Happened

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11. 11

    Question 11. In Chapter 81, Andrea reacts to Caderousse's tears with a hint of contempt, calling his emotions a display of what?

    • Avarice
    • Repugnance
    • Correct answer: Hypocrisy
    • Lassitude

    Andrea says 'Hold your tongue, hypocrite' when Caderousse weeps, dismissing the tears as a performance rather than genuine feeling — ironic given that Andrea himself is performing a false identity.

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12. 12

    Question 12. What does the word 'annuity' mean, as used when Andrea describes the income from his father?

    • A one-time payment made on an anniversary
    • Correct answer: A fixed sum of money paid each year
    • A percentage of a company's annual profits
    • A type of bank guarantee on a loan

    An annuity is a fixed yearly income. Andrea tells Danglars his father has promised 150,000 livres per annum — an annuity — from the day he marries.

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13. 13

    Question 13. Dumas writes that Caderousse spoke 'sententiously' when giving Andrea advice. What does this word best mean?

    • In a gentle, encouraging manner
    • In a tone full of nervous hesitation
    • Correct answer: In a pompous, moralistic way using short pithy sayings
    • In a loud, threatening voice

    Sententiously means given to expressing moral pronouncements in a pompous, aphoristic way. Dumas uses it ironically — Caderousse dispenses wisdom like a sage while actually running an extortion scheme.

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