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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 class does Toru have with Midori?

2. Who was Hatsumi?

3. What strange thing did Nagasawa once eat to end a feud between freshmen and upperclassmen?

4. What word does Naoko call "a man's word"?

5. What is the one thing Toru thinks he knows about the well Naoko describes?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Naoko describe the conditions in which she writes her letter to Toru?

2. How did Toru and Naoko celebrate her twentieth birthday?

3. Why is Toru writing this book?

4. What does Nagasawa tell Toru are his reasons for wanting to join the Foreign Ministry?

5. Why didn't Midori like her high school?

6. How do Toru's living arrangements change after summer break?

7. How did Naoko and Toru spend their afternoon together after meeting on the train?

8. What sorts of things do Naoko and her fellow patients do for entertainment at the hostel?

9. Why is Naoko's roommate referred to as "Dr. Ishida"?

10. Describe Toru's roommate.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss how the story of the field well at the beginning of the novel represents the future of Toru and Naoko's relationship and why he might have placed it so early in the story.

Essay Topic 2

Toru's connection to many of the other characters in the novel is based on a shared experience with death. Please choose at least one other character and discuss how this connection affects the relationship.

Essay Topic 3

In what way does Murakami use sex to represent the ways in which people communicate with one another? Please use at least three examples.

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