Penguin Readers Factsheets level E

Teacher’s notes 1

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ELEMENTARY SUMMARY

he Lady in the Lake, first published in 1943, is the As Chandler’s reputation grew, he was employed as a T fourth of Raymond Chandler’s great detective screenwriter in Hollywood, and after stories featuring private detective . and starred in a film of he As usual, Marlowe is employed to find a missing person, became world famous. In later life he became increasingly

in this case the wife of Derace Kingsley, but in the course dependent on alcohol but he was recognized before he THE LADY IN LAKE of his investigation he uncovers a series of related crimes. died in 1959 as the outstanding writer of detective stories When Marlowe tries to interview Mrs Kingsley’s lover, in the USA. Lavery, he arouses the suspicions of a Doctor Almore, who lives opposite, and is warned off by a detective BACKGROUND AND THEMES named Degarmo. At Kingsley’s house in the mountains, Marlowe and the caretaker, Bill Chess, find the body of a The first detective stories were published in English in the woman in the lake, the face now unrecognizable but mid-nineteenth century, but they really became popular in apparently that of Chess’s wife, Muriel. the 1890s when Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created the private detective Sherlock Holmes. In the Sherlock Marlowe puts together the career of a woman called Holmes stories and those of writers like Agatha Christie Mildred Haviland. She was once married to Degarmo, was who followed Conan Doyle’s example, the attraction lies Dr Almore’s nurse when his wife died, and later married in the unusual characters of the amateur detectives who Bill Chess and changed her name. Was she really ‘the lady resolve the crimes, which are presented rather like in the lake’? puzzles. As a result such stories were given the name of When Marlowe sees a woman leaving Lavery’s house ‘Who dunnits?’ and finds him dead, he begins to doubt it. And when he Chandler, however, found these stories unrealistic. He has to take money to Kingsley’s wife and the same set out to create a new kind of mystery novel, where the woman appears, he guesses what happened. But so has crimes are committed by ‘the kind of people who commit someone else who can’t afford to let the truth come out! them in real life’ and use guns, not unusual poisons, and Before he can solve the mystery, Marlowe himself is in where they are solved by professionals like Marlowe. In danger. these novels, it is not especially important who committed the crimes; indeed, they are not always the work of the ABOUT RAYMOND CHANDLER same person. What matters is how the characters react to each other and how Marlowe eventually pieces the truth Raymond Chandler was born in Chicago in 1888, the son together in spite of threats to his own safety caused by of an American father and Anglo-Irish mother, but came to dishonest policemen and by the criminals themselves. England after their divorce and grew up in London. He worked as a civil servant and wrote book reviews and It was much easier to find a realistic background for a poetry before emigrating to California in 1912. After murder mystery in Los Angeles in the 1930s and 1940s service with the Canadian forces in the First World War, he than in England at that time. In Los Angeles, guns were returned to America, fell in love with a married woman, easily obtainable, and as a result of the laws against Cissie Pascal, and married her after her divorce in 1924. alcohol (the Prohibition laws) passed in 1920s, gangsters He became a successful businessman with an oil had taken over such activities. When the laws against company, but was sacked in 1932. It was only then, when alcohol were ended, gangsters moved into drugs. A he was out of work, that he started to write detective crooked doctor like Dr Almore in , stories for Black Mask magazine. Out of these grew his supplying drugs to the rich, is a typical product of this first novel, The Big Sleep, published in 1939, which culture, as are spoilt rich women like Mrs Kingsley. It was introduced the character of Philip Marlowe. an atmosphere where the police were also likely to be corrupt. Degarmo in this novel is one of a number in Chandler’s work who think nothing of covering up crimes

© Pearson Education 2000 level Penguin Readers Factsheets 2 Teacher’s notes

and beating up citizens who get in their way (such as Chapters 3-5 Marlowe, for example). 1 Put students into groups of four. Each group writes three questions that they would like to ask each of the The Lady in the Lake is told, like all the Marlowe novels, following people: Mrs Kingsley, Dr Almore, Mildred in the first person, which enables us to identify with the Haviland, Detective Degarmo. Students in one group hero. As he gradually uncovers layers of corruption and as play the four characters and the other group asks their new crimes take place, we follow the course of events at questions. The characters must try to tell the truth. the same speed, ask the same questions as he does and 2 Ask each group to say who they think is the lady in the like him, are forced to change our minds until we reach the lake and who killed her; who killed Mrs Almore; and same conclusions and solve the mystery. When the who killed Lavery. But do not tell them if they are right Hollywood actor Robert Montgomery made a film of The or wrong! Lady in the Lake in 1947 with himself as Marlowe, he Chapters 6-8 carried this idea so far that he made the camera follow Put students into groups of four. Say they are going to Marlowe’s eyes so he was only seen in a mirror. Chandler make a film of The Lady in the Lake. Ask them to talk described the film as ‘a cheap Hollywood trick’. No doubt about this question: Which actors will play the parts of Marlowe, Degarmo, Jim Patton and Mildred Haviland? Chandler was annoyed because he had written better screenplays himself and Marlowe represented his own ACTIVITIES AFTER READING THE BOOK values and attitude to life. Ask students to look up clue and connect in their Marlowe is still the most famous ‘private eye’, more dictionaries. Ask them if they guessed the ending of the interesting than any of the many imitations. He is honest, book. Then ask them to work in pairs to find clues in the story: loyal, brave and single-minded in his pursuit of the truth. But we can identify with him and find him attractive (a) for the idea that Mrs Kingsley, not Mildred Haviland, because he is not a saint. He likes a drink, and pretty girls, was the lady in the lake; and above all, very important since he is telling his own (b) to connect Degarmo with the murder of Mrs Almore story, he has a sense of humour, often directed at himself. and of Mildred.

Communicative activities Glossary

The following teacher-led activities cover the same It will be useful for your students to know the following new words. sections of text as the exercises at the back of the reader, They are practised in the ‘Before You Read’ sections of exercises at the back of the book. (Definitions are based on those in the Longman and supplement those exercises. Further supplementary Active Study Dictionary.) exercises, covering shorter sections of the book, can be found on the photocopiable Student’s Activities pages of Chapters 1-2 this Factsheet. These are primarily for use with class body (n) all of a person readers, but with the exception of pair/groupwork lady (n) a woman questions, can also be used by students working alone in lake (n) a large area of water lit (past tense of light) (v) to make something burn a self-access centre. murder (v) to kill somebody

THE LADY IN LAKE private detective (n) people pay this detective money for their work ACTIVITIES BEFORE READING THE BOOK suicide (n) this is when somebody doesn’t want to live and ends their Put students into pairs and tell them to look at the life pictures in the first four chapters of the book. One student trouble (n) difficulty chooses a picture and tells the other student what is in it. whisky (n) a strong drink The other student finds the picture in the book. The Chapters 3-5 second student then finds another picture and tells the cover up (v) not to tell people about something first student about it, which he/she has to find. drug (n) people take this to change the way they feel nurse (n) this person helps doctors in their work Ask students to look up guess in their dictionaries. Tell the shoot (v) to kill somebody with a gun pairs that two of the people in these pictures kill other Chapters 6-8 people in the story. Then ask them to guess which they pretend (v) to say that you are somebody or something when you are are and to write down their guesses. not scarf (n) people wear this round their neck (the part of the body ACTIVITIES AFTER READING A SECTION below the head) to keep them warm throat (n) the front of somebody’s neck (the part of the body below Chapters 1-2 the head) Ask students to work in pairs. Marlowe speaks to all these people, one after another. Why does he speak to them, or why do they speak to him? Make a sentence for each one: Mr Kingsley, the redhead with blue eyes, Lavery, Degarmo, Bill Chess, Jim Patton.

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E

Student’s activities 1 The Lady in the Lake 2 Photocopiable 3 Students can do these exercises alone or with one or more other students. Pair/group-only exercises are marked. 4

Activities before reading the book 5

First, do ‘Before You Read’ exercise 1 on page 41 of your CHAPTERS 3-5 6 book. Now read the Introduction. Why do you think the story is called The Lady in the Lake? What does Marlowe Chapter 3 think is in the lake? Why do you think she is there? ELEMENTARY 1 Answer these questions. (a) De Soto was a big man with a square face. Who Activities while reading the book is like that? (b) He showed the people in the village a CHAPTERS 1-2 photograph. Who did they think it was? (c) How did Marlowe find out that Mildred Haviland Chapter 1 was Muriel Chess? THE LADY IN LAKE 1 You are Mr Kingsley. Which happened first? Which (d) Who gave her the watch? happened second? Put the numbers 1 to 6 next to (e) Who does Marlowe think killed her? the sentences. 2 These sentences are not right. Put them right. (a) My wife wrote to me and said: ‘I’m going to marry Lavery’. The garage boy at the Prescott Hotel says that (b) Marlowe came to my office. (a) Crystal Kingsley arrived with Chris Lavery. (c) My wife went to my house in the mountains. (b) she went to the station in her car. (d) She didn’t come back to Los Angeles for an (c) she wore a yellow dress and had brown hair. important dinner. (d) he knows she was the woman in the photo. (e) I met Lavery in Los Angeles. Chapter 4 (f) The Prescott Hotel in San Bernardino told me they had my wife’s car. 1 Why are the police going to think Mrs Kingsley killed Lavery? Which sentences are right? 2 Answer these questions. (a) A woman with yellow hair came out of his house. (a) Where does Dr Almore live? (b) Who does he telephone? (b) Her dress and hat were in his cupboard. (c) Why does he telephone him? (c) Lavery knew the killer. (d) How did Mrs Almore die? (d) He was with Mrs Kingsley in San Bernardino. (e) When did she die? (e) The killer used a woman’s gun. Chapter 2 (f) Mr Kingsley says it was his wife’s gun. 1 Answer these questions. 2 Fill the gaps ( ...... ) with these words. (a) When did Bill Chess meet his wife, Muriel? body cover-up drugs murder nurse private suicide (b) When did she leave him? trouble (c) Why did she leave him? Mrs Almore died a year ago. She took (d) When did he last see Crystal Kingsley? ...... and one night she came home ill. (e) Why is the date important to Marlowe? Dr Almore was out but his ...... put her 2 Are these sentences right or wrong, or the person to bed. But later she got up and went to the garage. doesn’t know? Lavery found her dead ...... there. The (a) Bill Chess doesn’t want to talk to Marlowe. police said it was ...... but Mrs Almore’s (b) He is sad because his wife left him. parents thought it was ...... Perhaps (c) He didn’t love her. there was a police ...... and Dr Almore is (d) He thinks she went away with Crystal Kingsley. afraid a ...... detective will find out. (e) He thinks the body in the lake is his wife. Perhaps Degarmo helped him and that is why he hit (f) Jim Patton thinks Chess killed her. Marlowe and told him not to make ......

© Pearson Education 2000 level Penguin Readers Factsheets 2 Student’s activities

Chapter 5 Chapter 8 Webber thinks Marlowe is right about Mildred Haviland 1 Find the two halves of the sentences. (page 21) and knows she was Degarmo’s wife. He wants to ask Marlowe questions. Work with another student. (a) Marlowe and Degarmo went to Little Fawn Lake Student A You are Webber. What questions are you (b) Marlowe didn’t have a gun going to ask Marlowe? (c) Degarmo says Kingsley was stupid Student B You are Marlowe. You think the man with the (d) Degarmo didn’t know Marlowe wore Kingsley’s photo called De Soto was Degarmo. Answer the scarf questions and ask Webber about Degarmo. (e) Bill Chess thought the lady in the lake was his wife CHAPTERS 6-8 (f) Chris Lavery was trouble for Mildred Chapter 6 (i) because Marlowe didn’t tell him. Answer these questions. 1 Why doesn’t Marlowe want to take the money to Mrs (ii) because she wore her clothes and had yellow Kingsley? hair. 2 Who did she speak to when she phoned his office? (iii) because they wanted to talk to Kingsley. 3 How will she know who Marlowe is? (iv) because he knew she was not Mrs Kingsley. 4 What colour is her hair now? (v) because he left his scarf in the hotel room. 5 How does Marlowe know that she was the woman (vi) because he thinks they can get you into trouble. outside Lavery’s house? 2 This is Mildred Haviland’s diary. Put the sentences in 6 Why does he want to take her to the police? order. What happened first? What happened second? 7 Who do you think hits Marlowe on the head? (a) Lavery knew who I was so I went to his house and shot him. Chapter 7 (b) Mrs Almore found me in bed with the doctor so I Marlowe found three dead bodies and he thinks gave her drugs. someone killed Mrs Almore a year ago. Who died and (c) I found Crystal Kingsley in bed with Bill so I put who killed them? Finish the sentences. her in the lake. (d) I married Al Degarmo and he gave me a watch. 1 Marlowe thinks ...... killed Mrs Almore. (e) I phoned Mr Kingsley’s office and said I was his ...... was afraid, and ...... wife. covered up for her. (f) Lavery saw me there so I went to El Paso with him and wrote to Kingsley. 2 He says the lady in the lake was ...... (g) I married Bill Chess but I didn’t love him. Degarmo thinks ...... killed her but THE LADY IN LAKE (h) I left Al and went to work for Dr Almore. Marlowe thinks that perhaps ...... found her and killed her. (i) I’m going to the Black Cat bar because I want some money. 3 The second body Marlowe found was (j) I took her money and car and went to San ...... Marlowe knows the woman he Bernardino. saw outside killed him. Perhaps the woman outside (k) Al Degarmo helped me to get away and the was ...... police said it was suicide.

4 He says the third body was ...... He says that perhaps ...... killed her and hit Activities after reading the book him because he found a scarf on the floor and he saw it on ...... that evening. But he watches 1 You are Jim Patton. Write about the problem of the lady in the lake. Who told you about it? What did you ...... ’s face when he tells the story. think at first? What happened after that? How did Marlowe help you to find the answer? 2 There are good and bad policemen in this story. With a friend, say why these men are good or bad at their job: Marlowe, Jim Patton, Degarmo.

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