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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. What does the Japanese ambassador demand in exchange for an end to hostilities?

2. What does Ryan believe Japan's ultimate goal is?

3. What distraction is created in order to cover the three Comanche helicopters?

4. Where are Clark and Chavez hiding out while Ryan's operation is planned?

5. What do Clark and Chavez tell Nomuri to do after the Japanese attacks?

Short Essay Questions

1. How are the Japanese air defenses destroyed?

2. What is Yamata's reaction to the American counter-attack?

3. How is Chris Cook's betrayal discovered?

4. How does Durling resolve the political crisis of Kealty's legal problems?

5. Explain the arrangement suggested by both Nagumo and the Japanese ambassador.

6. What troubling things does JAL pilot Torajiro Sato witness?

7. What does Isamu Kimura agree to help the U.S. and the Russians with? How is he convinced of the rightness of his actions?

8. What complications at home force Ryan to act quickly in forming a plan, and keep much of it secret?

9. How does Ryan hope to achieve surprise in launching the carrier Stennis?

10. Describe the entire mission carried out by the U.S. Rangers in Japan.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Intelligence operations are an important part of this novel. Many critical plot lines revolve around the covert actions of U.S., Russian, and even Japanese operatives. Their methods are varied and range from the ultra-high-tech to the incredibly mundane, but they often manage to get information and secure targets that could never be achieved otherwise.

Part 1) Describe some of the intelligence operatives seen in the novel. Explain these individuals personalities, backgrounds, and skills, and make a generalized statement about agents from each major nation discussed in the book.

Part 2) Explain some of the methods used by operatives throughout the novel. Compare high and low-tech solutions to similar problems.

Part 3) Discuss some of the results achieved by intelligence operatives. Assess how critical these results are, how they affect the narrative, and whether they could have achieved their goals by other available methods.

Use examples and quotes from the book to support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 2

Negotiations between Japan and the U.S. take place for almost the entire duration of the conflict between these nations. The U.S. wishes to avoid war without compromising itself, and Japan for the most part seeks to gain time to further its own military goals.

Part 1) Summarize the negotiations that occur in the novel. Who are the participating nations, and what are their goals? What resolutions result from these negotiations?

Part 2) Discuss some of the overt techniques used in these negotiations, such as compromise, discussion, and threats.

Part 3) Explain some of the covert techniques used in these negotiations, such as spying, intelligence gathering, bribery, and blackmail.

Use examples and quotes from the book to support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 3

Yamata has a grudge against the U.S. that demands action. He forms a far-reaching plan that takes years to come to total fruition. Yamata is a brilliant strategist and will apparently stop at nothing to crush the United States. His plan effectively throws the U.S. into multiple crises at once, from which they only just manage to escape.

Part 1) Explain Yamata's specific intent with his multiple-front plan. How does he hope to bring the U.S. to its knees?

Part 2) Discuss how Yamata sows the seeds of his plans long ahead of time. What other preparations does he make?

Part 3) Describe Yamata's plan in specific detail. How is it executed in practice?

Part 4) Use specific examples to explain how Yamata deals with random emergent events and either succeeds or fails to use them to his advantage.

Part 5) Discuss the success Yamata's plan.

Provide support for your conclusions with quotes from the novel.

(see the answer keys)

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