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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. Why does Bao-yu beg Xi-feng to let he and Qin Zhong stay longer in the temple?

2. What arrangements does Xi-feng talk to her husband about in relation to get-togethers?

3. When Dai-yu hears one of Bao-yu's romantic stories, she becomes _____.

4. Where does Xi-feng's carriage briefly stop during the funeral procession for Qin-shi?

5. What important event is the Prince of Bei-jing present for?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is Qin-shi's honor and devotion to family seen before she dies?

2. Why does Aroma manipulate Bao-yu in Chapter 19?

3. What does Bao-yu add to the book he is reading, and how does Dai-yu respond?

4. Why do the children move into the Prospect Garden?

5. What is Shui Rong's impression of Bao-yu?

6. What does the way the Jia family undertake preparations for Yuan-chun's visit show about their character when it comes to money?

7. For what reason(s) might Bao-yu have become discontented living in the Prospect Garden?

8. How does Bao-yu show increasing maturity in his response to the quarrels among his female companions?

9. Why is Dai-yu overcome with grief as she listens to the words of the actresses rehearsing in the garden?

10. How do the servants of the house react to Qin-shi's death?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does the author use the setting of the Prospect Garden as a key location in the novel?

Essay Topic 2

"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?

Essay Topic 3

Destiny and predestination is a central theme throughout the novel. What narrative devices does the author utilize to maintain the reader's interest in this idea through an atmosphere of inevitability that pervades the novel's subtext?

(see the answer keys)

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