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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 does Ts'ui Meng talk to that his mother helped?

2. To placate the ghost, where is Jen's wife buried?

3. After who dies does Ts'ui confess his murder?

4. When the beautiful surroundings disintegrate, what does Jen's wife feel?

5. Who defends the alibi of the supposed murderer?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is Kao made to pay for Wang's burial?

2. Describe Wang's surreal dream.

3. What does he monk urge Ts'ui Meng to do for his own safety?

4. What do many women do after their husbands die in China?

5. What is the conflict between a local farmer and another Wang family?

6. How is Jen's punishment lessened and what does it say about the Chinese system?

7. What does Huang discover at Jen's house?

8. How does Kao defend himself at the trial for the murder of Wang?

9. How does Ts'ui Meng try to avenge injustices meted out to Li?

10. What happened when Wang woke up from her dream?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Taoism strongly emphasizes the relationship of people to the environment in harmony. How does this belief system contrast with the violence depicted in the book? Can such actions such as Ts'ui and Li's in response to injustice be reconciled with Taoism? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

In the story of Ts'ui Meng, Ts'ui Meng kills a woman who tortured and killed her mother-in-law and also her husband. Is he justified in his action? Was he just? Did Ts'ui Meng have the right to take the law into his own hands? What character traits are revealed by his actions?

Essay Topic 3

Spence's book covers primarily a third-person narrative with some stories interwoven. Do you find this style choppy? Why or why not? Is it comprehensive? Does it flow well?

(see the answer keys)

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