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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 does the mysterious woman give Toru in Chapter 34?

2. What is missing from the bottom of the well in Chapter 31?

3. What superlative does Toru use to describe Ushikawa in Chapter 13?

4. According to Toru in Chapter 23, how are Cinnamon's grandfather and Lt. Mamiya connected?

5. What is the title of the document Toru finds in the computer at the end of Chapter 25?

Short Essay Questions

1. What problem does Ushikawa admit with Kumiko's meeting Toru, and how does he solve it in Chapter 19?

2. What does the tabloid in Chapter 21 determine about the dummy corporation that owns the hanging house?

3. What plans do most women in May Kasahara's factory have?

4. What does Toru do after Nutmeg and Cinnamon stop coming to the residence?

5. How is Toru implicated in an assassination attempt in Chapter 33?

6. In Chapter 22, what does Kumiko say about her current state of mind?

7. What new offer does Ushikawa make to Toru Okada in Chapter 16?

8. What two bits of strange information does Malta Kano provide Toru in Chapter 30?

9. What plan does Kumiko reveal in Chapter 17?

10. How does May Kasahar's worldview change in Chapter 36?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is a vast menagerie of different storylines and themes. One theme that lingers beneath the surface of the central narrative is the legacy of the Second World War and its psychically wounding effect. Write an essay about the war's place in the novel, in two parts below:

Part 1) Write a paragraph about the veterinarian and his days in the Chinese zoo as the allies approach. How do the few events mentioned in the book about this man indicate an absurd force driving the war? What does Murakami mean to get across about the war by the fact that these stories are told by two characters that never fought in World War Two?

Part 2) Write a paragraph about the war stories of Lieutenant Mamiya. To what extent does Mamiya's narrative illustrate the brutal realities of war? How have these experiences affected Mamiya is the War's end? How are they a counterpoint to the stories of the veterinarian?

Essay Topic 2

A major theme of Murakami's novel is personal reinvention, and this reinvention is often made most explicit in characters who choose to rename themselves and others. Write an essay about characters in the novel who choose to change names, focusing on three instances. What events transpire that precipitate this change? What is the nature of the change? Is the change permanent? Conclude each paragraph by stating the essential thematic purpose for this change in name.

Part 1) Toru Okada, when speaking with May Kasahara.

Part 2) Malta and Creta Kano.

Part 3) Toru Okada's cat.

Essay Topic 3

In The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, Haruki Murakami juxtaposes the fantastical with a sort of general malaise that permeates modern Japanese society. Write an essay about this general malaise, describing how it manifests itself in the business world, in politics, and in popular culture. How do both Toru Okada and May Kasahara choose to ignore this malaise? Do they drop out of society? Conclude by discussing how this portrait of Japan reflect the Lost Decade in which the novel is set.

(see the answer keys)

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