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

Short Answer Questions

1. In Chapter 3, in what city does the narrator encounter air raid refugees?

2. After visiting Kusano, how does the narrator feel?

3. On the train, what does Mr. Ohba do in excess?

4. What does the narrator feel like when the narrator imagines kissing Sonoko?

5. How long does the university postpone classes during the Allied-raids?

Short Essay Questions

1. When does the narrator get his first opportunity to spend time with Sonoko?

2. When Sonoko confronts the issue of the break-up with the narrator, what does she want to know?

3. What does the narrator take extra time to point out, regarding his feelings for Sonoko?

4. What is the narrator's opinion of the factory that produces war planes?

5. When the narrator pretends not to understand what a sodomite is, how do the guys around him react?

6. As the relationship between the narrator and Sonoko grows, why does the narrator struggle with "pangs of consciousness"?

7. Why does the narrator offer to carry Sonoko's bag?

8. When the narrator sets out on a bicycle ride with Sonoko, what does he want to happen?

9. Why does the narrator decide suicide is a foolish option?

10. Why do the military doctors think the narrator has tuberculosis?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Although the narrator fears death, the life he lives is not his own. Write an essay supporting the argument that the narrator lives as though he is already dead.

Essay Topic 2

Upon meeting Omi, the narrator is confronted with sexual feelings for the boy.

1) What intimate moment do Omi and the narrator share that begins their friendship?

2) What attracts the narrator to Omi?

3) How does this attraction affect the narrator?

Essay Topic 3

The narrator has an obsession with death.

1) Why is the narrator interested in death?

2) As a child, what does he do to learn more about death?

3) How does the narrator feel about death?

(see the answer keys)

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