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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. When Kusano is a soldier, what time does his family have to get up in order to visit with him?

2. What does Sonoko inspire the narrator to do?

3. What color does the sky turn following an air raid?

4. How does the narrator end his relationship with Sonoko?

5. When the narrator is around Sonoko, how does he feel?

Short Essay Questions

1. When the narrator is excused from the draft, what is he surprised to realize?

2. Upon witnessing the sight of the air raid victims, what does the narrator want to do?

3. What is the narrator's opinion of the factory that produces war planes?

4. Why does the quote "The measure of a woman's power is the degree of suffering with which she can punish her lover" bother the narrator?

5. When does the narrator get his first opportunity to spend time with Sonoko?

6. Why does the narrator want to stay in a hotel with Sonoko?

7. What does the narrator take extra time to point out, regarding his feelings for Sonoko?

8. What does the narrator ask Kusano regarding the relationship he ended with Sonoko?

9. Why does the narrator decide suicide is a foolish option?

10. After the visitation with Kusano, why does the narrator become determined to love Sonoko?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The picture of Joan of Arc fascinates the narrator in one of his earlier memories. Upon learning the knight in the photograph is a woman, the narrator loses interest in it. Why?

Essay Topic 2

The narrator is surrounded by feminine influence, yet certain social cues teach him how a boy "should" act.

1) Who provides the narrator with these social cues?

2) What does the narrator do to act out his gender expectations?

3) In what ways does the narrator struggle against his gender identity?

Essay Topic 3

The narrator spends much of his early life fantasizing about blood, death, and gore. Because of the war, the narrator is confronted with the reality of this world. Instead of being excited, as the narrator expected he would be, he is repulsed. Examine the dichotomy in the narrator's opinions towards violence.

(see the answer keys)

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