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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 local delicacy did Theroux find for sale to passengers at the stations in Burma?

2. Why were there so few skiers on the train to Sapporo?

3. Why was William Clark so revered in Japan?

4. What was the topic of the conference Ghosh and Rahman attended in Singapore?

5. What kind of stories did Hirai Taro specialize in?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Mr. Bernard treat Theroux at his mansion in maymyo?

2. How did the family planning experts react to Theroux's questioning about the sizes of their own families?

3. How did Colonel Tuan believe Vietnamese viewed Americans as the war wound down?

4. Describe the Japanese obsession with the high cost of living in Japan.

5. How did Theroux describe the clothes laundering he witnessed from the trains in Asia?

6. What common prostitution story did Theroux hear numerous times during his travels and how did the story told in Laos differ?

7. What image was brought to mind by the sight of the Japanese workers doing mass calisthenics?

8. Describe the Kali religious festival from Chapter 16.

9. How did Theroux feel about the fast trains between cities in Japan?

10. How did Westerners and Japanese react to the suicide of the Japanese writer, Yukio Mishima?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Theroux described a sense of violence and tribal lawlessness in Afghanistan in the 1970s. In what way did the tribal differences inhibit the development of a peaceful society? Referring to the time Theroux visited Afghanistan, did it appear that outsiders (e.g., the Soviets and the Pakistanis) were manipulating the tribal differences to sow discord? Why was the nation facing a possible war with Pakistan? Was Theroux risking too much by traveling through the country?

Essay Topic 2

Many of the religious processions and festivals observed by Theroux appeared to be much more colorful, exuberant, bloody (in some cases), and well-attended than religious activities in Western countries. Do you think people in poorer parts of the world pay closer attention to religion? On the flip side, do cultures tend to drift away from religious ritual as they become more prosperous? Is the change inevitable? Did the profound dedication to religious faith in poor countries that Theroux witnessed offer any important insights into those cultures?

Essay Topic 3

Yashar Kemal, the Marxist highly critical of the Soviet Union, was full of contradictions, according to Theroux. The author's traveling companion, Molesworth, commented that the Turks lacked character because they were neutral during World War II. Would the inability of a nation to take sides during that pivotal and generation-defining war affect the nation's character? What other nations were neutral during WWII? What impact, if any, did that have on their cultural development later on? Does neutrality lead to dullness or vice versa? Did Theroux seem to find the Turks dull?

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