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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 type of dwarf trees does the tobacconist have?

2. What time does Shingo get out of bed in Chapter 15, Section 3?

3. What month is it in Chapter 16?

4. Where does a friend make reservations to meet Shingo after they have dinner and then sit in the bar?

5. Who has to tie Shingo's tie in Chapter 16?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Shingo describe a foreigner who is on the train when it is stopped in Chapter 15?

2. Why does Shingo take his shoe off his right foot on the train?

3. What wakes Shingo when he dozes on the train in Chapter 15?

4. What news does Eiko bring Shingo in Chapter 13, Section 2?

5. What presents does Kikuko bring back from Tokyo?

6. How do Shingo and Kikuko describe the appearance of black lilies?

7. How did Kikuko get money for an abortion?

8. How is Shingo dealing with the yatsude?

9. Why does Shingo suspect that his friend who had cancer died from suicide?

10. What does Fusako take from Kikuko in Chapter 12?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The Ogata family attends a Kabuki play. Discuss Kabuki plays, and the play that the family attended.

Essay Topic 2

Shingo appears to have changed the most in the novel. Discuss how characters did or did not change through the course of the novel.

Essay Topic 3

The author uses descriptions of nature to illustrate or emphasize Shingo's state of mind. Discuss how descriptions of nature are used to illustrate or emphasize Shingo's state of mind.

(see the answer keys)

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