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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. Who else is on the bus to New York?

2. The main conflict of Ellison's original story revolves around

3. How does the vet react when Mr. Norton tries to explain his interest in the college?

4. Ellison's original story was written about which of the following?

5. What is the narrator afraid of losing?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why do the people at the Men's House treat him with hostility?

2. What does Dr. Bledsoe mean by "acting the nigger."

3. How does the setting in chapter 5 provide additional foreshadowing?

4. Why is Harlem a particularly appropriate setting for the novel?

5. How has the narrator ended up in the factory hospital? How is he being treated once he gets there?

6. Why do the grandfather's dying words make the narrator feel guilty about receiving praise?

7. Why does the narrator say he is invisible?

8. Of what "irresponsibility" are sleepwalkers and dreamers accused?

9. What lie does Dr. Bledsoe expect the narrator to tell?

10. In what way, according to the veteran, is the narrator likely to become a casualty?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Blindness is one of the most pervasive motifs of the novel. Discuss the different types of blindness that are represented by the characters, for example, Norton, Mary, the two nuns, Brother Jack, Ras, the narrator himself, and others. Choose three or four characters that represent different types of blindness and explain how their blindness influences their actions and decisions. Is there anyone in the novel who sees clearly, whether he uses his sight for good or for evil purposes?

Essay Topic 2

The narrator's grandfather tries to explain how he himself had failed the black people. What does the narrator initially not understand about the concept of "yessing" them to death? How does he eventually understand and adopt the idea? What conclusion does he finally draw about appearing to agree while actually plotting against someone?

Essay Topic 3

What is illusion? Can illusion be imposed upon a person without his consent? Can illusion be chosen so effectively that a person believes his own fancies? Discuss which characters are choosing to be deluded. Is the delusion helping or hurting their cause?

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