View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which country does Aunt Emily claim is the most racist toward the Japanese people?

2. As a child, how does Naomi remember the sounds of music that filled the house?

3. As an adult, what does Naomi do for a living?

4. Which of the following descriptions does NOT describe Obasan as Naomi sees her?

5. Which of the following is NOT a true statement about Naomi's childhood, according to Aunt Emily?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Naomi remember about the time she spent in Grandmother Kato's house growing up?

2. What preparations are made for Uncle's arrival in Slocan, and how is he greeted?

3. What story does Rough Lock Bill tell to Kenji and Naomi when they are out exploring the woods?

4. What are ghost towns, as they pertain to the novel?

5. How does the neighborhood say goodbye to the Nakane family when they are relocated from Slocan?

6. Why does the family have to be relocated from Slocan?

7. How is Obasan described when Naomi goes to visit her?

8. What is Naomi accused of when she is at the bathhouse, and how does she respond?

9. As a child, how does Naomi cope with the relocation and the internment of her family?

10. What was interesting about the marriage between Naomi's parents?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Colors act as very strong symbols throughout the novel, appearing both in Naomi's dreams and in her realities. Choose one color and generate a list of three times that this color was used throughout the novel. What do you think this color symbolizes in Natalie's story?

Essay Topic 2

The Nakane family spreads over three generations within the novel. Briefly characterize each of the three generations of the family, and describe their different relationships with their heritage, and their new home in Canada.

Essay Topic 3

Throughout the novel, Stephen struggles the most with his inability to balance culture.

Part 1) Compare / contrast Stephen's relationship to his culture as a child with his relationship to his culture as an adult.

Part 2.) Generate a list of events that highlight the way that Stephen began to pull away from his culture.

Part 3.) Theorize whether or not Stephen will return to his cultural roots based on the way that the novel ended.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 928 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample