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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 are some of the ways Kazu recalls getting food when he was homeless?

2. 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?

3. What was the Buddhist name given to Koichi at his funeral?

4. What does Kazu worry his life lacked?

5. Why did Kazu's father speak to the mourners at the funeral?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Kazu describe Shige?

2. How old was Kazu when he first began to work, and what did he do for work?

3. Describe the conversation between the homeless man and woman after the woman repeats her disbelief that Shige is dead.

4. Why does Kazu ultimately decide to move to Tokyo to work when his children are young?

5. What was Kazu's relationship with his children like while he was working in Tokyo?

6. What friend of Kazu's does he hear an old homeless man and woman discuss, and what does he learn about him?

7. Describe Kazu's family. Who were his parents? Where did they live? How many siblings did he have?

8. How does Kazu feel about his life on earth as described at the start of Tokyo Ueno Station?

9. How did Kazu's family financial status impact them while his wife was in labor with their first child?

10. What happened in the Tohuko region and Hokkaido after the Tokyo Olympics ended, and what type for work did Kazu do in Sendai?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay analyzing Yu Miri 's language style and word choice in Tokyo Ueno Station. What are some words that stand out to you and why? What words are repeated? What words are most impactful? Explain your answers.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay examining the ending of Tokyo Ueno Station. How did the ending fit into the storyline? Do you think the ending was effective? What theme might the ending represent? What might the author have done differently?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss elements of the narrative structure in Tokyo Ueno Station: Exposition, conflict, complication, climax, resolution and conclusion. Do all the elements make for a logical and linear story? How does the story's structure express the novel's themes?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 764 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample