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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. Who makes the decision to go back to Japan for the fourth trip?
2. What tone are the letters written in?
3. What is inside the envelope that Joncour receives after his last trip to Japan?
4. What does Joncour do with the envelope he receives after his last trip to Japan?
5. What do the letters say that are sent to Joncour after his last trip to Japan?
Short Essay Questions
1. Why does Joncour take Baldabiou to the house of Jean Berbeck that he buys? What is he looking for? Why does he think that Baldabiou will understand?
2. What does Joncour mean when he says to the Englishman, "We are all marvelous, and we are all revolting"?
3. On his fourth trip to Japan, what does Joncour find when he arrives at Hara Kei's village? How does he see the village? What is the state of the village a symbol of?
4. When the young boy is hanged, why does Hara Kei say the boy was the message of love? What does he mean by that? Does this have anything to do with the boy's happy disposition? What?
5. On his final trip to Madame Blanche's, what does she tell Joncour about his wife that he did not know?
6. What does Joncour hear as Hara Kei hold the gun to his head? Describe the sounds of what is happening around him.
7. The letter describes a sexual encounter but eludes to fact that it has already happened? What does this mean?
8. Why does the author describe the train trip so vividly returning from Japan on the fourth trip? What is the significance of the heat that Joncour sees on the fields and with the other passengers? What is he watching happening?
9. When Joncour finally tells Baldabiou about the girl in Japan he says, "To die of nostalgia for something you will never live," what does he mean?
10. On the fourth trip to Japan, when Joncour offers gold to Hara Kei, what is he buying?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Joncour, at the end of his life, is left with symbols of the past. What are the symbols in the novel, and how many does Joncour hold on to as he grows old? Was Joncour ever able to identify the symbols when he needed to? Is he later able to look back and see his errors in translating the symbols?
Essay Topic 2
Why does the author use the historical character of Louis Pasteur? What does this add to the novel? What about other historical notations? Does this help or hurt the novel in your opinion?
Essay Topic 3
Which of the characters have attributes? What is something that would connect to each character? For example, ash for Hara Kei. Try to come up with an attribute for each character in the novel. Explain you answer.
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This section contains 1,400 words (approx. 5 pages at 300 words per page) |
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