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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 is Ts'ui Meng supposed to become friends with in order to save his life when he has committed too many crimes?

2. Who does Ts'ui Meng adopt for a year?

3. What kind of a dream does Jen's wife have?

4. What does Ts'ui-hsien's husband try to do to her?

5. Who does Jen accuse of killing his wife?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Li protect Ts'ui Meng's wife?

2. What is the sad story P'u Sung-ling tells about a young woman and a nobleman?

3. What is Chinese law regarding adultery?

4. Why is keeping order difficult in T'an-ch'eng County?

5. How does Jen place the blame of Wang's death on Kao?

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

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

8. Why do you think Spence named the book The Death of Woman Wang?

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

10. What does Li do to avenge the death of Wang's wife?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explain the role of women in rural China in the 1600s when the women in the stories and the main narrative are living their lives. What precedents do they feel compelled to follow? What restrictions do they have? What freedoms did they have that 21st century women do not have?

Essay Topic 2

Spence frequently describes the importance of virtue in relationship to widows. He points out that virtue is sometimes prompted by a desire for honor. Is this real virtue? Why or why not? Is this desire linked to cultural norms or human pride or both?

Essay Topic 3

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?

(see the answer keys)

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