The Bridegroom

“Saboteur” depicts railroad policemen harassing a citizen and then charging him with a crime. What are the policemen’s motivations to act this way? How do their actions relate to larger themes in the collection?

Guhan marries a woman in “Alive” after only meeting her once. Others celebrate them later as a model couple. In your opinion, do they make a happy couple? Why or why not? Use evidence from the text as support.

The neighbors in “The Woman From New York” have different opinions about Jinli’s return. Some feel she should be able to see her daughter, Dandan, again, while others feel different. In your opinion, who is correct, and why? Provide evidence.

“In the Kindergarten” begins with Teacher Shen pleading with a doctor not to tell anyone about her abortion, but no mention appears of this incident again in the story. Why does Ha Jin open the story with this incident? What relation does it have to Shaona’s thoughts and actions?

What do you believe it is, precisely, that makes Huping lose his mind while fighting the tiger in “A Tiger-Fighter Is Hard to Find”? How does this relate to larger themes in the narrative?

At the end of “Broken,” Manjin is still unsure whether the woman he encountered in the theatre had been Tingting or not. Ultimately, do you think it was Tingting that approached Manjin in the theatre? How does you answer affect the meaning of the story?

The narrator of “The Bridegroom” believes that Beina and Baowen’s marriage is a failure, and hopes Beina will divorce Baowen after his sentencing. Beina, however, decides she will wait for her husband. Write an argument defending either the narrator or Beina’s point of view. 

Why do you believe Nimei is so distraught when Hsu Peng fails to visit her at the end of “Flame?” Support your answer with evidence from the story.