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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In the 1993 film adaptation of The Joy Luck Club, what actress played the role of Jing-Mei?
(a) Ming-Na Wen
(b) Tsai Chin
(c) Tamlyn Tomita
(d) Kieu Chinh

2. Who performs first at the talent show where Jing-Mei makes her piano debut?
(a) The adults
(b) The youngest children
(c) The oldest children
(d) The trombone players

3. Who is the only person applauding when Jing-Mei looks up from her curtsy at the talent show?
(a) Jing-Mei’s mother
(b) Jing-Mei’s father
(c) Auntie Lindo
(d) Mr. Chong

4. “Two Kinds” is a short story that was initially published in what periodical in February 1989?
(a) The San Franciscan
(b) Reader’s Digest
(c) The New Yorker
(d) The Atlantic

5. What does Jing-Mei kick under her feet as her mother drags her to the piano for practice after the talent show?
(a) The cat
(b) The bedspread
(c) The piano bench
(d) Throw rugs

Short Answer Questions

1. When was the Chinese Exclusion Act signed into law?

2. As Jing-Mei walks back to her seat after her performance in the talent show, she overhears a little boy say to his mother, “That was awful.” What does the boy’s mother reply?

3. What is the name of Jing-Mei’s mother in “Two Kinds”?

4. Jing-Mei says that soon after her mother got the idea for her to be a Chinese Shirley Temple, she took her to a beauty school in what district?

5. During what years did The Ed Sullivan Show air on television?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do Suyuan Woo’s ambitions in the beginning of the story set up the central conflict in “Two Kinds”?

2. What cultural similarities can be seen between the author’s childhood and that of Jing-Mei in “Two Kinds”?

3. In what ways can the reader see early in the story that Jing-Mei’s ambitions (and her mother’s) are misplaced?

4. How did critics receive The Joy Luck Club and “Two Kinds” upon publication?

5. What does Jing-Mei discover about playing the piano as she begins her studies with Mr. Chong?

6. How does Jing-Mei describe Waverly Jong in the narrative? What has Waverly gained recognition through?

7. How does Jing-Mei describe her mother’s immigration to America in the opening of the story? What did she leave behind?

8. How does Jing-Mei describe Mr. Chong’s history in music? How does she describe her first lessons?

9. How does Jing-Mei’s mother look after her performance at the talent show? What does Jing-Mei think as she watches the following performances?

10. How do Suyuan Woo’s actions in the story encourage the wrong responses from her daughter? What effects does this have on Jing-Mei?

(see the answer keys)

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