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The Woman in Black - Understanding the Text

This GCSE quiz helps you understand The Woman in Black, following Arthur Kipps’s journey from confident solicitor to haunted narrator and exploring how Hill shapes the story.

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Fascinating Fact:

The core story follows young Arthur’s journey from rational London solicitor to traumatised survivor after his time at Eel Marsh House.

In GCSE English Literature, understanding The Woman in Black means following Arthur Kipps closely as narrator. The novel shows how memory, setting and structure build tension and reveal lasting fear.

Key Terms

Narrator: The voice that tells the story. In this novel it is Arthur Kipps speaking in the first person.
Frame narrative: A story told by a character looking back on past events, creating a story within a story.
Gothic fiction: A type of story that mixes fear, the supernatural and strong emotion in dark or isolated settings.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What is The Woman in Black mainly about in GCSE English?

The Woman in Black is about Arthur Kipps, a young solicitor who visits Eel Marsh House to settle an estate and is haunted by a vengeful ghost. The novel explores grief, guilt and the impact of trauma.

How does Susan Hill create tension in The Woman in Black?

Hill creates tension through first person narration, isolated settings, shifting weather and unsettling sounds that Arthur cannot explain. Short sentences, repetition and delayed explanations keep the reader uneasy.

Why does Arthur Kipps tell his story years after the events?

Arthur tells his story years later because he has tried to bury the memories but cannot escape them. Writing the account is his attempt to face and control his past experiences.

Try These Related Quizzes

1 .

Why is Arthur sent to Crythin Gifford?

His employer, Mr Bentley, wants him to solve the mystery of the Woman in Black

His employer, Mr Bentley, wants him to sort through the deceased Mrs Drablow's papers

Mrs Drablow left instructions for her lawyers to attend her funeral

Mr Bentley wishes to attend Mrs Drablow's funeral in person, but is unwell

Arthur is sent to represent Mr Bentley's law firm at Mrs Drablow's funeral and to find and sort through her papers

2 .

Arthur believes that the business in Crythin Gifford will be...

complex

frightening

straightforward

exciting

The dry facts shared by Mr Bentley give Arthur the impression that his business will be swift and uncomplicated; his pauses and the manner in which he emphasises particular words give the reader a clue that he is aware Mrs Drablow's affairs are not at all straightforward

3 .

Who is Stella?

Mrs Drablow's servant

The Woman in Black

Mr Bentley's daughter

Arthur's fiancée

Arthur is reluctant to leave Stella behind in London while he travels North on business

4 .

Where does Arthur first meet Mr Daily?

On the train

At Mrs Drablow's funeral

At Eel Marsh House

In London

Arthur meets Samuel Daily on his final train between Homerby and Crythin Gifford. They begin their friendship with a typical conversation about the weather

5 .

What happens when Arthur decides to stay at Eel Marsh House overnight for the first time?

He hears a ghostly pony and trap

He sees the Woman in Black in the island's small graveyard

He hears the sound of the rocking chair coming from the locked room

He sees the Woman in Black in the house

Arthur sees the Woman in Black in the graveyard and hears the ghostly echo of the pony and trap's dreadful fate on his first visit to Eel Marsh House and yet feels brave enough to stay overnight on his next visit

6 .

How many nights does Arthur manage to stay at Eel Marsh House?

One

Two

Three

Four

The first time Arthur stays overnight, he hears the rocking chair in the locked nursery; on the second occasion he finds the door to the nursery unlocked and later that night saves Spider from being sucked into the mud when she chases into the marshes after a ghostly whistle. Arthur is rescued from the island immediately after this event by Mr Daily

7 .

How did Nathaniel Drablow die?

He died of a chill after getting lost in the marshes

He drowned

He caught a fever and died

His mother saw the ghost of the Woman in Black and he died unexpectedly shortly afterwards

Nathaniel Drablow, his nurse, his dog, the driver of the trap, Mr Keckwick, and the pony die when the pony and trap leave the causeway and become trapped in the mud while the tide is rising during a sudden sea-fret

8 .

What emotion motivates the Woman in Black's malevolence towards parents and children?

Hatred of children

Envy of the innocence of children

Hatred of adoptive parents

Grief at the loss of her child

Jennet Humfrye never recovers from the loss of her child. Her malevolence as a ghostly apparition is driven by this grief, her desire for vengeance born of envy for the happiness she was denied in life

9 .

What causes the terrible accident in which Stella and the baby, Joseph, die?

The pony is startled by the sight of Arthur standing in the path

The Woman in Black startles the pony by moving as if she will step into its path

Stella is so nervous after seeing the Woman in Black that she accidentally frightens the pony

The pony is startled by the sound of a gunshot

The pony appears to be able to see the woman in black, just as Arthur is able to see her. Her appearance turns the innocent enjoyment of a pony and trap ride into a scene of death when the pony crashes into a tree after being startled

10 .

Who is the fictional audience for Arthur's terrible tale?

Mr Daily

The Woman in Black

Arthur writes the story down for himself only

Arthur's wife and step-children

Arthur refuses to share his tale as a Christmas ghost story, instead writing it as a form of exorcism to rid himself of the terror of past events

You can find more about this topic by visiting BBC Bitesize - The Woman in Black

Author: Sheri Smith (PhD English Literature, English Teacher & Quiz Writer)