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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 changes Ji-won's mother's behavior in the beginning of this story?

2. Who runs the Last Chance Ranch?

3. What does Sae-ri think of James as a father?

4. What does Anjali's mother do to her hair?

5. Who is Sae-ri's' husband?

Short Essay Questions

1. In "A Map of the Simplified World," why is it so exciting to Ji-won to have a friend in Anjali?

2. What is Soo's brief conversation with Ki-tae's wife like?

3. In the story "First Language," how does Sae-ri feel about the Last Chance Ranch?

4. Why does Sae-ri sometimes feel that she is a less than good mother?

5. Why does the director of the Last Chance Ranch call Sae-ri and tell her to pick her son up?

6. Why does Sae-ri's mother finally send Matthew over to America and to Sae-ri from Korea?

7. How does Ji-won begin to build bonds with Fran?

8. How does Soo seem to feel about the store she and Jae run together in the story "The Church of Abundant Life?"

9. As a student applying for college, how does Ji-won look back on her time of friendship with Anjali?

10. Why do Soo and Jae have no children?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What specific topics and tensions related to end-of-life issues does Choi explore throughout this collection, and how do caregiving responsibilities affect different family's dynamics? Write an essay explaining your answers.

Essay Topic 2

How does Sae-ri's character change over the course of the story "First Language," and what part does her having and caring for her children play in her character's arc throughout the story? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 3

In the story "First Language," how does Choi communicate and explain Sae-ri's complex feelings towards and perceptions about her husband to the reader? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

(see the answer keys)

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