Spirited Away

Reading Check and Short Answer questions on key plot points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

Prologue-Part 1

Reading Check

1. What is Chihiro holding in the car?

2. Why does Chihiro start to panic?

3. What color is the wall that Chihiro and her parents arrive at?

4. What does Father presume the place they found must be?

5. What sound does Mother hear in the distance?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. How does Chihiro feel about her family’s move to somewhere new?

2. How do Chihiro’s parents treat her and react to her feelings?

3. What does Chihiro spot on the side of the road, and what does Mother say about it?

4. What spooks Chihiro when her parents want to enter the tunnel?

Paired Resource

Examples of Shrines in Shintoism

• This resource describes various types of shrines in Japan, where they are found, and what they represent. It also includes photos.
• How might the way the shrines are placed on the side of the road represent Modern Humanity’s Abandonment of Spirituality and Nature?

An Abandoned Amusement Park in Japan

• This CNN article showcases an abandoned amusement park in Japan, including photographs and descriptions.
• If you were faced with the opportunity to explore an abandoned theme park, would you? Why or why not? What do you expect you would find there? How might the abandoned amusement park connect with the theme of The Dangers of Decadence and Greed?

Part 2

Reading Check

1. What do Chihiro’s parents turn into?

2. What type of building does Chihiro find when she goes for help?

3. Who helps Chihiro when she is alone?

4. What signal is given to indicate that danger is coming?

5. What surrounds Chihiro when night falls?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What do Chihiro and her parents cross after entering the abandoned theme park, and what might that symbolize?

2. What do Chihiro’s parents find and how do they react when they find it?

3. Why does Chihiro refrain from doing what her parents do?

4. Why does Chihiro become confused and panicked on the bridge?

Paired Resource

“World Religions: Shinto”

• This video provides a look at Shintoism beliefs, traditions, and culture in Japan.
• How might the inclusion of Shinto elements speak to The Dangers of Decadence and Greed? How does decadence or greed contradict Shinto philosophy?

“How Do Humans Affect the Environment?”

• This brief article outlines the major ways humans impact the environment.
• Chihiro discovers that she has entered a type of spirit realm. How do you think these spirits feel about Modern Humanity’s Abandonment of Spirituality and Nature, and why? What has this abandonment led to?

Part 3

Reading Check

1. Why can Chihiro no longer return the way she came?

2. What arrives with masked spirits?

3. What type of animal spirit asks Haku where he has been?

4. What is the name of the witch who runs the bathhouse?

5. Where does Chihiro go at the end of Book 1?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does Haku give Chihiro, and how does it help her?

2. How do the spirits know there is a human nearby, and what does Haku do to prevent them from finding Chihiro?

3. Why does Chihiro believe she is dreaming?

4. Who is looking for Chihiro, and what does Haku advise that Chihiro do to deal with them?

Recommended Next Reads

Spirited Away: Books 2-5 by Hayao Miyazaki

• The subsequent three books explore the story’s rising action, climax, and conclusion.

Howl’s Moving Castle: Books 1-4 by Hayao Miyazaki

• Another film adapted into manga form, Howl’s Moving Castle has similar elements of magical realism and a female protagonist, as well as themes such as The Dangers of Decadence and Greed and How Love Propels One Toward Bravery and Maturity.
• Howl’s Moving Castle on SuperSummary