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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. In "The Bus Advertising Job," how does the narrator get to work?

2. Who catches the narrator studying a map in "The Bus Advertising Job"?

3. Who does the narrator see working at Hanabatake Ads?

4. Why does the narrator receive a bonus?

5. Who has a young child in "The Bus Advertising Job"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the narrator decide at the end of the first chapter?

2. What does Yamae do for a living?

3. Who is Yamae Yamamoto?

4. Who does Mr. Kazetani tell the narrator to keep an eye on?

5. Why does Yamae get a new coffee maker?

6. Who at the narrator's office has a young daughter?

7. What is the first job the narrator has in the book?

8. Who does the narrator see working at Hanabatake Ads at the end of the chapter?

9. What is found hidden in one of Yamae's DVD cases?

10. What job does the narrator get after the surveillance job?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay in which you explore the narrator's narrative tone. What is the nature of this tone? In what ways does the tone(s) support the themes of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay in which you explore the title of the novel. What makes an easy job? Does the narrator ever find one?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you explore narrator's relationship to Mrs. Masakado. What does Mrs. Masakado do for the narrator, and why does the narrator constantly feel guilty in her presence?

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