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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 actual name does Bao-yu cry out in his sleep?

2. What does the monk promise to do to the stone?

3. According to the inscription on the stone, what has the stone once been?

4. Who are the first people who come across the stone after the goddess leaves it there?

5. What is the real reason for Jia Rui becoming ill?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the connection between Bao-yu and Bao-chai deepen in Chapter 7?

2. How does the author establish karma as a central theme in Chapter 1?

3. What thematic devices can be drawn from Bao-yu's relationship with women both during his dream and afterward?

4. What does the story of Ying-lian and Feng Yuan suggest about the role of fate and karma in the world of the novel?

5. Discuss briefly the ways in which Dai-yu's personality is developed during her first days in the Jia household.

6. Although the Jia family throws a spectacular birthday party for Jia Jing even though he refuses to leave the monastery to attend, much of the conversation centers on Qin-shi's puzzling illness. Hypothesize as to why this is.

7. How does the story of Jia Rui teach a lesson about undue lust?

8. In what way does Dai-yu express her jealousy and somewhat obsessive attitude towards Bao-yu in the beginning of Chapter 9?

9. How are Bao-yu's father's sentiments about Bao-yu depicted in Chapter 9?

10. Explain the symbol of Greensickness Peak in relation to the rest of the novel.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explore the ways the author illustrates the divide between poor classes and rich classes in the novel and the various grey areas surrounding that divide.

Essay Topic 2

The fact that Bao-yu eventually chooses to be with Bao-chai and not Dai-yu, his supposed predestined soulmate of the past and future, comes as a surprise. Discuss the reasons why the author would choose to take the narrative in this direction.

Essay Topic 3

"In The Story of the Stone, the keeping of secrets frequently benefits all concerned." In your perception, is this statement true or false? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

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