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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. The narrator notes in the story that “A wink is the same thing as” what “to a blind man”?
2. What beverage does the blind man drink with his dinner in the story?
3. In what year was “Cathedral” chosen to appear in The Best American Short Stories?
4. What term describes a movement where a literary or artistic work is set out to expose the essence or identity of a subject through eliminating all non-essential forms, features or concepts?
5. Where does the blind man live?
Short Essay Questions
1. What is signified by the narrator’s choice to keep his eyes closed at the end of the story?
2. Where in the story does the protagonist undergo an “epiphany”?
3. How does the narrator begin his drawing? What does his wife ask at this time?
4. What are the narrator’s perceptions of Robert’s marriage as his wife describes it in the beginning of the story?
5. How does the narrator feel about the blind man’s visit in the beginning of the story? What are his impressions of “the blind”?
6. From what narrative perspective is the story told? How does this narrative style affect the reader?
7. How does the reader gain insight into the narrator’s prejudices against blindness in the story?
8. What do the narrator and Robert say in their discussion of religion in the story?
9. What takes place in the story as it builds to its climax?
10. What are the narrator’s thoughts after his wife falls asleep, leaving him alone with Robert?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Analyze and discuss the narrator as the protagonist of “Cathedral.” Approximately how old would you say the narrator is? What is his race and ethnicity? Where do you think the narrator works, based on the text?
Essay Topic 2
Analyze and discuss the economic and historical context of the story. If the story had been written in a different era, how might the protagonist’s employment situation have been different? How does the protagonist of “Cathedral” reflect the issues facing everyday Americans at this time?
Essay Topic 3
Examine and discuss correlations between the biography of Raymond Carver and the narrative of “Cathedral.” In what ways do you think Carver resembles the narrator of the story? How is alcohol a theme in Carver’s life and in the story? How does the epiphany in the story relate to Carver?
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This section contains 863 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) |
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