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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 does Nagasawa tell Toru is his "standard of action"?

2. Whose song comes on the plane's speakers after "Norwegian Wood"?

3. What other living thing did Toru and Naoko see that day in the meadow?

4. What does Toru say was Nagasawa's greatest virtue?

5. What did Toru drink as he read the letter for the third time?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Naoko say it would be wrong for her to stay with Toru all the time?

2. Why does the narrator, Toru, say that memory is such a funny thing as he describes the scene he remembers from the meadow?

3. What was the morning ceremony at the dormitory where Toru lived as a college student?

4. Why is Toru writing this book?

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

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

7. How does Midori feel about her father?

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

9. How did Storm Trooper affect Toru and Naoko's plans in January 1969?

10. How does the dining hall at Ami Hostel compare to the dining hall at Toru's dormitory?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does grief play a role in shaping the characters in this novel? Please use at least three examples.

Essay Topic 2

In "Norwegian Wood," Murakami depicts life and death as being on a continuum. Explain how the author uses the characters to develop this concept throughout the novel.

Essay Topic 3

How does the author's use of foreshadowing throughout this novel enhance or detract from the story? Be specific.

(see the answer keys)

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