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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. How much money does Wang Lung pay Ching as steward on Wang Lung's farm in Chapter 17?

2. What do the villagers call Wang Lung instead of "Wang the Farmer" in Chapter 30?

3. Where does the grain merchant live that Wang Lung has betrothed his eldest son to in Chapter 25?

4. What name does the schoolmaster give to Wang Lung's second-eldest son in Chapter 17?

5. Who stays with Wang Lung on his land before they depart to move into the townhouse in Chapter 29?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Wang Lung respond when he discovers his eldest son in Lotus's court in Chapter 24?

2. How have Wang Lung's business, circumstances, and fate changed in the beginning of Chapter 17?

3. What causes Wang Lung to become restless in Chapter 18?

4. How would you describe Wang Lung's sons in Chapter 30? How are each of his sons different?

5. What is the source of Wang Lung's main conflicts in Chapter 30?

6. What causes the flooding in Chapter 27? How does the flooding impact Wang Lung's village?

7. What does Wang Lung's young cousin do that causes conflict in Wang Lung's house in Chapter 31?

8. How does Wang Lung perceive Lotus's friendship with his aunt in Chapter 21?

9. What decision does Wang Lung make regarding his second-eldest son in Chapter 25?

10. What does Wang Lung do in order to gain control over his uncle and his family in Chapter 28?

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

Describe and discuss the plot structure of The Good Earth. Where does the exposition transition to rising action? Where does the climax take place? What are the conflicts that the protagonist faces in the climax? How are these conflicts resolved in the denouement?

Essay Topic 3

Why do you think the author has chosen to relate the narrative of The Good Earth from a third-person narrator? How would the story differ if it were related from Wang Lung’s point of view? Is the narrator’s perspective limited or omniscient and how does this affect the reader?

(see the answer keys)

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