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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 tool does the narrator note the blind man does not use after his arrival?

2. How does the narrator describe the blind man’s shoulders after his arrival?

3. The narrator’s wife tells him early in the story, “if you had a friend, any friend, and the friend came to visit, I’d” what?

4. 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?

5. At the end of the story, the narrator says, “I was in my house. I knew that. But I didn’t feel like I was” what?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is symbolized through the television set in the story?

2. How does the narrator describe Robert’s eyes in the story?

3. What conversation does the narrator have with Robert regarding alcohol after Robert’s arrival?

4. How many drinks do the narrator, his wife, and Robert have before dinner? What do they discuss?

5. What are the narrator’s perceptions of Robert’s marriage as his wife describes it in the beginning of the story?

6. Why does the narrator apologize to Robert during their discussion after his wife’s fallen asleep?

7. What can the reader discern of the narrator’s jealousy through the exposition in the beginning of the story?

8. Why does the narrator say the blind man is coming to visit in the beginning of the story?

9. How does the narrator’s wife respond to the marijuana downstairs when she returns?

10. How is the theme of alienation illustrated through the protagonist in the story?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the theme of prejudice as it applies to the narrator in “Cathedral.” How does the narrator demonstrate his prejudice about the blind early in the narrative? How does his prejudice change through the story? How is the narrator’s prejudice in the story developed around ignorance?

Essay Topic 2

Analyze and discuss the narrator’s wife in “Cathedral.” How old do you approximate this character to be? What qualities does the wife exhibit through her actions in the story? Based upon the author’s dialogue, how would you characterize the narrator’s relationship with his wife?

Essay Topic 3

Define “foreshadowing” in narrative literature and discuss examples of foreshadowing in “Cathedral.” How is the topic of religion foreshadowed in the dinner scene and later explored in the ending of the story? What else does the author foreshadow? What purpose does this example serve in the narrative? Does it build suspense? Does it create humor?

(see the answer keys)

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