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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. What is the mood surrounding Stephen's visit to the Tama shrine?

2. What does Stephen note about the garden when he and Matsu return from Yamaguchi?

3. Where does Keiko find Stephen when she heads to Matsu's to visit?

4. Why does Stephen say something has changed between himself and Keiko?

5. What effect does Matsu say Tomoko's illness had on their relationship?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Matsu's behavior at Sachi's house.

2. Explain how the war is impacting Stephen.

3. How does Keiko feel about her father's behavior?

4. Discuss Hiro.

5. What is the significance of the conversation Stephen and Keiko have on the beach?

6. Why does Penelope work for the Red Cross?

7. What activities surround Fumiko's arrival?

8. What does Stephen describe as his memories of Keiko?

9. What does Stephen discover Matsu doing with his father's fishing knife and why is it important?

10. How does Matsu feel about his sister's decision to deal with her disease?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Celebrations play a role in the telling of this story.

1) Choose one celebration and explain why it made a difference to Stephen's growth, perceptions, or daily life.

2) Describe how a different celebration reminds you of a western celebration or one you have participated in. Explain how your or a character in the story found meaning in the celebration mentioned.

3) Write a narrative of a celebration from the point of view of a character who attended it.

Essay Topic 2

Starting with Stephen's reclusive quarantine in Hong Kong, the theme of loneliness is used through the Samurai's Garden.

1) Choose an event or incident from the story that is spurred by loneliness and explain how that loneliness triggers other specific events.

2) Choose a character in the story who seems lonely despite being near other people. Describe the actions this leads to.

3) Choose two characters in the story who seek each other out. Explain the result of this action and how it affects each one's loneliness.

Essay Topic 3

Stephen sees Matsu as both a friend and a father figure at a time when he is losing respect for his own father. Compare and contrast Matsu and Stephen's father. How would the story be different if Stephen's father's affair had not been a part of the story? Does the fallibility of Stephen's father have any positive consequences for the family?

(see the answer keys)

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