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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. From which sources does news of the September conflict emerge?

2. How many provinces was France formerly divided into?

3. In "Urania: Astronomy," where does the nurse begin her procedure?

4. Which one does the narrator NOT describe in "Urania: Astronomy"?

5. What happens during Guan Soon's 16th year?

Short Essay Questions

1. In "Urania: Astronomy," why does the poetry appear in side-by-side translation?

2. Why does Cha include images of the circulatory system, the nervous system, and the respiratory system in in "Urania: Astronomy," a section dedicated to astronomy?

3. What is happening in the opening passage of "Melpomene: Tragedy"?

4. According to the narrator of "Clio: History," why has everything been lost to the Japanese?

5. Why does Cha include the letter from the Koreans living in Hawaii to the President of the United States?

6. Why does Cha include a quoted section of Japanese-Korean history in "Clio: History"?

7. What is the significance of the italicized passages in the "Opening"?

8. Discuss the laws the Japanese imposed on the Koreans.

9. Where does Mother teach?

10. Explain the letter to Mother in "Melpomene: Tragedy."

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Much of Cha's text deals with the experience of being a Korean-American woman in the period following the Korean War. How does she treat this experience? How does she comment on her place and/or reception within U.S. American culture? Is she nostalgic for Korea? Proud to be an American? Both? Support your answer with evidence from the text.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the significance of the work's nine-part structure. How does Cha's invocation of a Muse in each chapter structure and order the work? What new layer of meaning does it lend the text? Is this choice effective in adding to the overall message of the work? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 3

Language and the power of speech recur as central needs throughout the work. Often the act of speech or the need to communicate becomes the central focus of particular passages or entire sections. Analyze Cha's treatment of speech and language in the work. Is the power of speech celebrated? Is silence championed? How do the pressures of language acquisition factor into her commentary on language and communication? How do the pressures of immigrant or exile identity affect speech and language?

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