Question

As soon as the sun was up the guards came to lead the young prisoners to the Labyrinth. They did not see the sword which Theseus had under his cloak, nor the tiny ball of silk which he held in his closed hand. They led the youths and maidens a long way into the Labyrinth, turning here and there, back and forth, a thousand different times, until it seemed certain that they could never find their way out again. Then the guards, by a secret passage which they alone knew, went out and left them, as they had left many others before, to wander about until they should be found by the terrible Minotaur.

–“The Cruel Tribute,”
James Baldwin

How does the author create suspense in the passage? Check all that apply.

by placing characters in a labyrinth
by describing the labyrinth
by revealing Theseus’s concealed sword
by waiting until sunrise
by leaving the characters all alone

Answer 1

Correct answers:
- by placing characters in a labyrinth
- by describing the labyrinth
- by revealing Theseus’s concealed sword
- by leaving the characters all alone

Explanation: The confined, confusing setting and the descriptive "turning here and there, back and forth" build tension; the guards abandoning them heightens danger and uncertainty; and the narrator’s disclosure that Theseus secretly carries a sword (and the silk thread) creates dramatic irony and anticipation about what he might do. "By waiting until sunrise" does not contribute to the suspense in this passage.