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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Though the Soma gave Kazu's ancestor's land why were they unable to grow anything at first?
(a) They did not get enough sun.
(b) They did not know how to work the land.
(c) They did not give them the right to irrigate the land.
(d) There was a long drought when they first arrived.

2. What did Kazu notice as he stared at his son's face after he died?
(a) He noticed his son looked like him.
(b) He noticed how much is son looked like his father.
(c) He noticed how handsome his son was.
(d) He noticed how much his son resembled Setsuko.

3. How much education did Kazu complete before going to work to help support his family?
(a) Middle school.
(b) High school.
(c) Some college.
(d) Elementary school.

4. What are some things Kazu says about himself and his life at the start of the story?
(a) He was confident and quite a lady's man.
(b) He lacked confidence and had bad luck.
(c) He was a well-dressed intellectual.
(d) He made a lot of money and was very generous.

5. How often did Kazu visit his children when they were young?
(a) Every holiday, birthday and special occasion.
(b) Every other week.
(c) Once in summer and once in winter.
(d) Once a month.

6. What is Kazu's wife's name?
(a) Yoko.
(b) Setsuko.
(c) Mari.
(d) Koichi.

7. What did Setsuko wonder about regarding her son's death?
(a) If he called out for her.
(b) What he did just before he died.
(c) Who saw him last.
(d) If someone killed him.

8. How old were Kazu's children when he left for Tokyo?
(a) 21 and 24.
(b) 10 and 12.
(c) 14 and 18.
(d) 3 and 5.

9. Why did Kazu's father speak to the mourners at the funeral?
(a) Because the eldest male always speaks at a funeral.
(b) Because Setsuko had asked him to speak.
(c) Because Kazu's father was a priest.
(d) Because Kazu was unable to.

10. What news did Kazu receive about his son just days before his death?
(a) Nobody had heard from him for days.
(b) He was moving to Tokyo.
(c) He was getting married.
(d) He had passed the national radiology exam.

11. What do Pure Land followers believe happens to their dead?
(a) They are reincarnated and come back to the same family.
(b) They return to visit their family once a year during Bon festival.
(c) They are reborn as Buddhas and watch over their family every day.
(d) They are gone forever.

12. How old was Setsuko when she and Kazu first married?
(a) 29.
(b) 21.
(c) 18.
(d) 35.

13. What is the name of the park Kazu haunts and used to live in when he was alive?
(a) Ueno Imperial Gift Park.
(b) Ueno Arboretum.
(c) Tokyo Station Public Park.
(d) Tokyo Rose Garden.

14. Why are homeless people often evicted from the park where they live?
(a) They are evicted because they often cause problems in the park.
(b) They are evicted whenever the imperial family comes to visit a local museum.
(c) They are evicted because the locals complain about their presence.
(d) They are evicted because it is illegal to be homeless in Tokyo.

15. What is familiar about the jean jacket Kazu sees an old homeless man wearing while talking to a homeless woman about the lack of work?
(a) It looks like Shige's.
(b) He had seen it in a magazine.
(c) It belonged to Kazu's son.
(d) It used to be Kazu's.

Short Answer Questions

1. What was Koichi's body covered with after the funeral service?

2. What did the priest tell Setsuko people should do when someone dies rather than mourning them?

3. Who is typically the person to carry the funeral tablet at a funeral?

4. Where was Koichi found dead?

5. What was Kazu distraught when his wife needed a midwife while she was in labor with their son?

(see the answer keys)

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