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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What red article of clothing did Hyeonseo wear to school that caused the teacher to call her a capitalist and to slap her face?
(a) Boots.
(b) A hat.
(c) A scarf.
(d) Suspenders.

2. How many broad categories exist within the caste system of songbun?
(a) Two.
(b) Ten.
(c) Four.
(d) Three.

3. A bystander tells Hyeonseo's mother that the near-death experience is a good omen, for someone who survives a disaster at such a young age is sure to what?
(a) Rise to great prominence.
(b) Be happy all her days.
(c) Have a long life.
(d) Marry well.

4. Hyeonseo says that she will never be truly free of her country's what, no matter how far she travels?
(a) Gravity.
(b) Identity.
(c) Indoctrination.
(d) Beauty.

5. What is NOT a quality named by Hyeonseo in her list of beliefs North Koreans held about The Great Leader before his death?
(a) The Great Leader is omniscient.
(b) The Great Leader does not sleep.
(c) The Great Leader is immortal.
(d) The Great Leader does not urinate.

6. What percentage of North Korea's population consistently falls within the Hostile category of the songbun caste system?
(a) 40%.
(b) 10%.
(c) 30%.
(d) 20%.

7. What does hyeon mean in Korean?
(a) Smile.
(b) Sunshine.
(c) Wealth.
(d) Good fortune.

8. How many gradations of status exist within the three broad categories of songbun?
(a) 11.
(b) 75.
(c) 36.
(d) 51.

9. What example is given of a person who would inhabit the lowest level of songbun?
(a) A heretic.
(b) A murderer whose victim is of higher status.
(c) A thief.
(d) A political prisoner with no hope of release.

10. The author states that once she entered kindergarten, she never again belonged to her parents, but instead belonged to whom?
(a) Kim Jong-il.
(b) Her future husband.
(c) Kim Il-sung.
(d) The state.

11. What does seo mean in Korean?
(a) Smile.
(b) Health.
(c) Wealth.
(d) Good fortune.

12. Hyeonseo says that after a young woman does what in North Korean society, it can be hard for her to find a marriage match?
(a) Becomes sexually active.
(b) Dates.
(c) Gets divorced.
(d) Turns eighteen.

13. Who are the bowibu?
(a) Secret police in North Korea.
(b) Secret police in South Korea.
(c) Secret police in North Korea.
(d) Secret police in Laos.

14. With whom did Hyeonseo and Min-ho stay while their mother tended to their father in the Hyesan hospital?
(a) Aunt Pretty's family.
(b) Uncle Cinema's family.
(c) Uncle Opium's family.
(d) Mr. Ahn's family.

15. What was the true cause of Hyeonseo's father's death?
(a) Influenza.
(b) A fractured skull.
(c) A bruised spleen.
(d) Suicide.

Short Answer Questions

1. To what figure is Chapter 14's title referring in its statement that "The great heart has stopped beating" on the chapter's title page?

2. At the time of her writing, how many years ago does Hyeonseo say North Korea had been created?

3. What aspect of Hyeonseo's mother's character does Hyeonseo say is unusual for a woman of high songbun?

4. During what activity does the author say is the only time she and her classmates called each other "comrade" (33)?

5. What simile does Hyeonseo use to describe the fireball emanating from her childhood home?

(see the answer keys)

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