View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Mason find to be too Chinesey, according to the recollection of Leila in this chapter?

2. ____________ does not offer to come to the home in Chinatown immediately when called.

3. What does Mason call Mah when she comes home from her hair appointment?

4. Nina complains that ____________ is not doing her share of the work at the laundry business.

5. Leon demands that ____________ and Ona break up, though she continues to see him behind his back.

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Mah do when Nina decides to bring the urn with Ona's ashes to Baby Clothes?

2. Ona decides to jump from the 13th floor of the building, which confuses Leila. What is the meaning of the number 13?

3. Why does Leon want to tell everyone about the death of Ona in Chinatown?

4. What does a teacher's aide tell Leila about Leon after he walks out on Mah during a discussion about Ona's ashes?

5. Things have changed after the affair. What are Leon and Mah like after the affair with Tommie Hom?

6. After Mah finds a new job at Ching's, Leon goes away to a trip on the sea to Australia. What happens to Mah's job when he is away?

7. What do the sewing ladies do for Mah and the rest of the family after the death of Ona?

8. Why did Leila have to translate between Leon and a Woolworth's manager when Ona was eight or nine?

9. Why don't the sewing women play music when they are working in the sweatshop together?

10. What is the argument between Leon and Mah regarding the ashes of Ona after her death?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

As with any story and the reading of any story, one must ask whether they can trust the narrator to tell them the truth and to help them understand the characters.

Part 1: Why is Leila the best choice to be the narrator of this story?

Part 2: Do you think the readers can trust Leila to tell the story fairly and in an unbiased way?

Part 3: How might the story have changed if it was told from the viewpoint of Mah?

Essay Topic 2

Leila seems to be the character who gets put into the middle of a number of situations in the story.

Part 1: Why do you think that Leila is often put into the middle of situations within this story?

Part 2: Is there another character in the story who might be a better mediator? Why or why not?

Part 3: Why is Leila resentful of being the one who has to mediate some situations?

Essay Topic 3

Fitting into the crowd is something that the characters in this story struggle with - some want to fit in and others do not.

Part 1: Why is it so important to fit into the crowd in life?

Part 2: Why do you think it's better to fit into a crowd than to go against it?

Part 3: How do you think the characters in this story could fit into the American society more easily? What might they do in order to fit in?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 740 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample