View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why does the vet want the narrator to hear his story?
(a) So the narrator will take up the cause of the vets
(b) So the narrator will persuade Mr. Norton to give a donation
(c) So the narrator will return to the Golden Day
(d) So the narrator will not become another casualty

2. Why does the narrator have difficulty getting along on his first two jobs?
(a) He is not correctly educated for the job
(b) He doesn't understand or fit in the blue-collar/union world
(c) He is too highly educated for the job
(d) He is the only black person on the job

3. What unexpected sight does the narrator see in New York?
(a) many policemen
(b) many black people
(c) people from many nationalities
(d) half-naked white women

4. Which of the following represents the narrator's philosophy?
(a) Truth is destined to come forth
(b) The light reveals the truth
(c) The light reveals all things
(d) The truth is the light and the light is the truth

5. Why does the narrator not tell the doctors his name after the procedure?
(a) He is too tired
(b) He is trying to protect himself
(c) He can't remember it.
(d) He doesn't realize that he hasn't said anything

6. How does the narrator regard Mr. Bledsoe?
(a) As an enemy
(b) As a role model.
(c) As an unpredictable element
(d) As a protector

7. What does the narrator tell Mr. Emerson that he wants to do with his future?
(a) get a high paying position in the city
(b) become a teacher
(c) remain quietly in New York
(d) become Mr. Bledsoe's assistant

8. What group of society is represented by the white men at the Battle Royal?
(a) Lower class (poor white men)
(b) Leaders (governors, politicians)
(c) Middle upper class (supervisors, lawyers, bankers, etc)
(d) Educators (professors, scientists)

9. According to Mr. Brockway, what happened when the company tried to replace him?
(a) The other workers went on strike
(b) No one else would take the job
(c) All the paint went bad
(d) The union went to bat for him.

10. What is the narrator afraid of losing?
(a) His job.
(b) His identity
(c) His scholarship
(d) The respect Mr. Bledsoe has for him.

11. How is the narrator's invisibility related to his residence?
(a) The whites allow him to stay there because they consider him unimportant.
(b) The white residents simply ignore him.
(c) He is able to come and go without being noticed.
(d) He lives in a building for whites and uses their electricity because they cannot conceive of his presence.

12. What does the narrator see as he is watching people leave the chapel?
(a) Dr. Bledsoe's cadillac
(b) The veteran doctor
(c) Mr. Trueblood's car
(d) Mr. Norton's car

13. Ellison's primary struggle in writing the book was
(a) Finding a way for the hero to succeed.
(b) Giving the hero sufficient depth of character
(c) Allowing the hero to fail
(d) Accepting the concept that nothing could really be done to change society

14. What would the narrator like to add to his "hole"?
(a) a phonograph player
(b) a TV set
(c) a kitchen
(d) four more radio-phonographs

15. What kind of speeches has the narrator given from the stage in the chapel?
(a) Speeches that expressed his frustration in cultural symbolism.
(b) Speeches that flattered the whites.
(c) Phony speeches with notes supplied by white men.
(d) Genuine speeches that expressed how he felt.

Short Answer Questions

1. What bit of advice from the young Mr. Emerson does the narrator actually heed?

2. In chapter 9, the narrator walks a short distance with another man. What is the man doing besides singing?

3. What does the narrator lack in Chapter 12?

4. Why does Mr. Bledsoe compose his face into a bland mask?

5. How does the narrator describe the students as they enter the chapel?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 714 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample