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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 Yun leave for Shen Fu up until the day of their wedding day, something that gets her mocked by others?

2. What did Shen Fu use when he didn't have any pieces of stone to put around his narcissi?

3. What is not generally a part of Chinese literature, though this book tends to reveal more of these details than most books do?

4. What should the roots of a potted tree look like when one is choosing between potted trees to raise?

5. While Shen Fu's favorite flower doesn't have a __________, the colors are long-lasting and they are easy to prune.

Short Essay Questions

1. What are the other two favorite flowers of Shen Fu, which he describes in the story according to the way he arranges them and pots them?

2. Why are Shen Fu's failings described as falling into the category of provision for his family?

3. What are some of the things which Shen Fu describes in relation to the placement of rocks?

4. What is the gift from a friend that Shen Fu receives when he is younger, which causes him to go into a lot of detail?

5. What it the task which Wan Tsai-chang completed, which makes him the only person that Shen Fu knows to have done such a thing?

6. What did Yun's family laugh at her for which made her sheepish in the days leading up to her wedding with Shen Yu?

7. Why does the teacher send Shen Fu home in order to write his compositions for school, according to the book?

8. What are three things which Shen Fu gives instructions on when he is talking about plants and caring for plants?

9. What happened to destroy the work that Shen Fu and Yun did on their yard?

10. How would the Pavilion of the Waves' Lotus Lovers' Hall be described, according to the book?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The family dynamics for Shen Fu and Yun are played out in the many ways the family mocks them and disowns them for trying to be happy.

Part 1: Why do you think it's so common for families to be the worst critics of their own children?

Part 2: How do you think you would handle so much criticism from your own family?

Part 3: Do you think that Shen Fu and Yun should have simply listened to their families? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Shen Fu asks the question right from the start - why do misfortunes come - setting up the tone for the third section.

Part 1: Why do you think this question is important for Shen Fu to have answered?

Part 2: How do you feel about the presence of misfortune in your own life?

Part 3: Do you think it's possible to avoid misfortune in your life?

Essay Topic 3

When Shen Fu and Yun decided they wanted to entertain their friends, they would not spend a lot of money on food, but they would use that saved money to buy wine instead.

Part 1: What do you think of the choices that Shen Fu and Yun make in order to entertain their friends?

Part 2: Why do you think Shen Fu and Yun feel it is important to always have wine when they are entertaining?

Part 3: How would you feel if you were a guest of Shen Fu and Yun?

(see the answer keys)

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