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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. How long did Shintaro serve in the military?

2. Why does Ono enjoy Shintaro's company?

3. What does the corporation offer Mrs. Kawakami?

4. How does Mrs. Saito feel about the demonstrations in the streets?

5. What always makes Mrs. Kawakami smile?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Saito regard the demonstrations in the streets?

2. Why didn't Ono object to Noriko's marriage into a family that was below their station?

3. How does Taro behave during the miai?

4. Why does Ono say he would never forgive himself if he became like his father?

5. Why does Ono conceal his efforts on her behalf from Noriko during the weeks leading up to the miai?

6. Why does Ono's father burn his paintings?

7. Why does Enchi ask Ono to leave when he learns who he really is?

8. What is surprising about Noriko's comments to Setsuko about Ono?

9. How does the Migi-Hidari show its loyalty to the emperor?

10. Ono says that he would not have made his admission of guilt at the miai had he not felt compelled to do so. What social situation compelled him?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What difference do you see in the way Ono interacts with his daughters and his grandson and the way Noriko describes his earlier behavior as a father? Do you trust her description? Do you think he has changed? Analyze Ono's development as a father based on his daughters' responses to him.

Essay Topic 2

First, Shintaro calls Ono a traitor. Second, we learn about the artwork that has made him call his friend a traitor. Third, we learn of Matsuda's persuasive conversation that induced Ono to change his painting style, and fourth, we learn that the work resulted in his expulsion from Moriyama's tutelage. Analyze the way the clarity of the story is affected by this type of organization. Why do you think Ishiguro chose not to tell is story in simple chronological order? What effect does dealing with time in this way have on you as a reader?

Essay Topic 3

The constancy of change is a theme in this novel. Select a secondary character such as Shintaro, Matsuda, or Kuroda and analyze the changes they undergo as the story progresses.

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