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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. Why does the narrator get angry sometimes when he thinks of Lisette and Perry, and of Lisette's leaving?

2. What do the villagers go up the mountain to gather in the story "Flying Machine"?

3. What work does the narrator of "On the Street Where You Live" do?

4. Who is Cao Cao's wife?

5. What pet does Zhu Feng's father have?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Cao Cao work so relentlessly on his airplane?

2. What does Perry mistakenly think the narrator has done with Lisette?

3. Why does Xiaolei become obsessed with the pen for years after losing it?

4. How does Anning feel when she and Cao Cao try his plane out with the town watching?

5. In "Land of Big Numbers," why is Zhu Feng jealous of Li?

6. What does Cao Cao suspect about the party secretary in "Flying Machine"?

7. What does Xiaolei start to think about the handsome and well-dressed man who gets flowers almost every week?

8. In "Flying Machine," how do Cao Cao's efforts to win over the local Communist Party work out?

9. What is Anning's strongest memory of the time when she and Cao Cao got married?

10. How does Lisette treat the narrator in the story "On the Street Where You Live"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What are some of the unexpected benefits of the reactions of people to the qiguo fruit in the story "New Fruit" during its second season, when it elicits strong feelings of regret, sadness, and negativity in people eating it? What aspects of human nature do you think Chen is trying to illustrate with the characters' behaviors around the fruit in this story? Write an essay explaining your answers.

Essay Topic 2

How would you describe Chen's tone and language throughout this collection? What specific feelings and ideas do you think Chen attempts to communicate through her characters to the reader, and how does the specific language she uses throughout the collection enhance them? Write an essay explaining your answers.

Essay Topic 3

In the story "Gubeikou Spirit," why do you think the people in the train station put up with their predicament for so long? What specific ideas and aspects of living under Communist rule does Chen use Pan's and the others' experiences trapped in the train station to explore and explain? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

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