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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 many plays can professional players make in the game that the Master has?

2. Where do Otake's students live?

3. After a delay of how many months does Otake make a suspicious play?

4. What does the Master do that resembles a violent struggle internally?

5. Why does Otake play with black stones?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is Otake willing to forfeit the game?

2. How is the ceremony for the game of go described by Yasunari?

3. What does Uragami do for the widow with care and deference after the Master's death?

4. What does Uragami notice in a photograph of the Master that he adds in his article?

5. What is the controversy surrounding the match he had with Wu?

6. What are some concessions made for the game that seem very difficult to follow?

7. Why is the Master not a popular opponent?

8. Why does Uragami think the Master plays with Otake?

9. Why do many players play with the Master?

10. Why is Otake teased in the newspaper articles about the match?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

One of the main themes in the book is ethical and social responsibility. List at least four examples where Kawabata employs this specific theme. Is the battle between making ethical choices obvious or subtle? What characters are involved in this kind of battle? Do you think the right person or group won? Does good always triumph over evil in the case of The Master of Go ethics? Where do these definitions appear vague or incomprehensible?

Essay Topic 2

Describe Otake's initial foray into game playing. What did he enjoy about it? What were his concerns? When The Master got offered a prestigious title, how did this change his life? What new skills did he acquire?

Essay Topic 3

The author used more than one instance of irony in The Master of Go. Cite at least two examples that you can identify in the book and note why they were examples of irony.

(see the answer keys)

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