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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. In what city was Wang Lung born?

2. What color are eggs died to celebrate when Wang Lung has a son in Chapter 3?

3. How many sleeping mats does Wang Lung purchase to fashion into a hut for his family in the city in Chapter 11?

4. How many children does Wang Lung's uncle have in Chapter 7?

5. What food does Ching give to Wang Lung before Wang's family departs for the south in Chapter 9?

Short Essay Questions

1. What information does Ching relate to Wang Lung when he returns to his land in Chapter 15?

2. Who brings Wang Lung's wife to him in Chapter 1? How is this character described?

3. What does Wang Lung vow to do in regards to his land in Chapter 6?

4. How does Wang Lung perceive his wedding day when he awakens in Chapter 1?

5. How do Wang Lung's circumstances during the winter differ from those of his uncle in Chapter 4?

6. What event leads to Wang Lung's decision that he must take his family back to the land in Chapter 12?

7. Why did Wang Lung's father choose a slave for Wang Lung's wife?

8. What actions are taken after O-lan gives birth to a son in Chapter 4? Why?

9. Describe O-lan's actions when she comes to Wang Lung's home. How does Wang Lung perceive his wife?

10. How does O-lan describe the fall of the House of Hwang in Chapter 5?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe and discuss the political unrest in China that is seen throughout The Good Earth. What are the causes of the uprisings that take place? How does Wang Lung relate to the political events around him? How do his sons?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the theme of inequality in The Good Earth. What setting reflects this theme the most? How? What do you think is the cause of the inequality seen in the novel? Has inequality been resolved in China? In what ways?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the impacts of The Good Earth’s publication. How did Americans reading the novel in the late 1930s perceive it? How did the novel change perceptions about the Chinese? How has reading the novel changed your own perceptions?

(see the answer keys)

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