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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How long is the blind man staying with the narrator and his wife in the story?
(a) 1 night
(b) 10 nights
(c) 6 nights
(d) 3 nights

2. According to the narrator, the train ride from the blind man’s in-laws’ home to the narrator’s home takes how long?
(a) 5 hours
(b) 9 hours
(c) 12 hours
(d) 2 hours

3. Why does the narrator’s wife say she shouldn’t be smoking this when she is passed the joint in the story?
(a) It makes me too talkative
(b) I can barely keep my eyes open as it is
(c) I could get drug tested
(d) It is the devil’s weed

4. Where is Travis A.F.B. located?
(a) New Jersey
(b) Kansas
(c) Georgia
(d) California

5. What do the narrator and his wife offer the blind man as they smoke marijuana in the story?
(a) A cup of coffee
(b) More pie
(c) A pillow
(d) A blanket

6. What slang term does the blind man use at the end of the story to mean “to lie”?
(a) Fib
(b) Slander
(c) Fudge
(d) Evasion

7. Where does the narrator’s wife fall asleep after they’ve smoked marijuana?
(a) In the bathtub
(b) On the couch
(c) In the chair
(d) On the floor

8. After hearing her name, the narrator asks his wife what question?
(a) Was his wife southern?
(b) Was his wife a Negro?
(c) Was his wife a Yankee?
(d) Was his wife Canadian?

9. In what year was “Cathedral” chosen to appear in The Best American Short Stories?
(a) 1991
(b) 1987
(c) 1982
(d) 1975

10. What artistic forms are addressed in “Cathedral”?
(a) Sculpture and dance
(b) Novel writing and music
(c) Poetry and drawing
(d) Drama and music

11. Where does the blind man put his hand as the narrator begins to draw in the story?
(a) On the paper
(b) On the narrator’s face
(c) Over the narrator’s hand
(d) At the edge of the table

12. According to the narrator’s wife’s story, how did the blind man meet his wife?
(a) She would see him at the library
(b) She volunteered at her church
(c) She sat next to him on a bus
(d) She worked for him

13. What word from the story refers to a tall, acutely pointed pyramidal roof or roof-like construction upon a tower?
(a) Bluff
(b) Mesa
(c) Dome
(d) Spire

14. Where in the narrative does the rising action begin?
(a) When the cathedral has been drawn
(b) When the wife gets divorced
(c) When the wife meets the blind man
(d) When the blind man arrives

15. The narrator surmises of the blind man’s wife that she could wear what color eye-shadow around one eye and it wouldn’t make a difference?
(a) Silver
(b) White
(c) Green
(d) Black

Short Answer Questions

1. What kind of paper does the blind man ask the narrator to go get when they are talking late at night?

2. How did the narrator’s wife maintain contact with the blind man since they last saw one another in person?

3. Where did Raymond Carver earn his Bachelor of Arts degree?

4. What does the blind man take from his back pocket as he and the narrator are talking and watching television late at night?

5. What were the literary formats that Raymond Carver’s career was dedicated to?

(see the answer keys)

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