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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 word from Part III, Sensei’s Testament means flirtation?

2. After discovering K’s body, whom does Sensei decide to wake?

3. How many siblings did Sensei have growing up?

4. Sensei says of the financial agreement reached between him and his uncle that he had two options: to accept what was offered, or to do what?

5. Past what temple does Sensei walk after crossing the Mansei Bridge in Part III, Sensei’s Testament?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Sensei learn of his adoptive father from a friend in Part III, Sensei’s Testament?

2. What does Sensei learn about K’s discovery of the engagement in Part III, Sensei’s Testament?

3. Where does Sensei go after proposing to marry Ojosan in Part III, Sensei’s Testament? What does he think about?

4. What is K’s justification for defying his adoptive parents’ wishes in Part III, Sensei’s Testament?

5. Describe the scene when Sensei discovers K’s suicide in Part III, Sensei’s Testament. What is Sensei’s emotional response?

6. What conversation does Soseki’s father have with Saku-san in Part II, My Parents and I?

7. How does Soseki’s father greet him when he arrives home in Part II, My Parents and I? What is Soseki’s impression?

8. What is revealed in K’s suicide note in Part III, Sensei’s Testament? How does Sensei react?

9. How old is Sensei when he is orphaned? Who is left in his charge after his parents’ deaths?

10. What does K confront Sensei about outside the library in Part III, Sensei’s Testament? How does Sensei respond?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Soseki’s studies at the university in Part I: Sensei and I. What is implied as Soseki’s focus of study? Where does he live while in Tokyo? What does Soseki have in common with Sensei regarding his education?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and discuss the Emperor Meiji and the Meiji era. How did Japan change as a society during this historical period? What were Japan’s relationships with neighboring nations? How is this era embodied in Kokoro?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the theme of monetary greed in Kokoro. What characters illustrate this theme clearly? How is Sensei’s past affected by greed? What impact did this have on Sensei and his feelings for humanity?

(see the answer keys)

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