Chapter 5 Quiz — Invisible Man

by Ralph Ellison

Comprehension Quiz: Chapter 5

Where does Chapter 5 of Invisible Man take place?

  • In Dr. Bledsoe's office at the college administration building
  • In the college chapel during the weekly vespers service
  • In the Golden Day tavern during a visit with veterans
  • In the narrator's dormitory room the night before expulsion

Who delivers the central sermon in Chapter 5?

  • Dr. Bledsoe, the college president who presides over the ceremony
  • The college chaplain who leads the weekly vespers service
  • Reverend Homer A. Barbee, a visiting preacher from Chicago
  • The Founder's grandson who inherited his religious mission

To which biblical figure does Barbee compare the college's Founder?

  • Moses, who led his people out of bondage and into freedom
  • David, who defeated a powerful giant against all odds
  • Solomon, who built a great temple through divine wisdom
  • Abraham, who was promised his descendants would be a great nation

What happens to the Founder during the train journey in Barbee's sermon?

  • He is attacked by a white mob and barely escapes with his life
  • He falls gravely ill and is removed from the train at a desolate station
  • He has a spiritual revelation that inspires him to build the college
  • He meets a wealthy benefactor who agrees to fund the institution

What shocking revelation occurs when Barbee finishes his sermon?

  • Barbee confesses that he fabricated parts of the Founder's story
  • Bledsoe publicly denounces the narrator in front of the congregation
  • Barbee stumbles and is revealed to be physically blind
  • The white trustees announce they are withdrawing their funding

Reverend Barbee's first name, Homer, is an allusion to which literary figure?

  • Homer Simpson, a satirical American cultural icon
  • Homer, the ancient Greek blind poet who composed the Iliad and the Odyssey
  • Homer Plessy, the plaintiff in the landmark Plessy v. Ferguson case
  • Homer Winslow, the American realist painter of the post-Civil War era

How does the congregation respond to Barbee's sermon?

  • They sit in skeptical silence, questioning the mythologized narrative
  • Students weep openly and the white trustees are deeply moved
  • The audience grows restless and begins whispering among themselves
  • Faculty members exchange knowing glances about Barbee's exaggerations

What role does Dr. Bledsoe play during the chapel service in Chapter 5?

  • He delivers a fiery introduction that overshadows Barbee's sermon
  • He confronts the narrator publicly about the Trueblood incident
  • He presides over the ceremony as its orchestrator, controlling the staging
  • He sits quietly in the audience, deferring all authority to Barbee

Which of the following events actually happens in Chapter 5?

  • Barbee stumbles and his dark glasses are displaced, revealing his blindness
  • The narrator confronts Dr. Bledsoe about his manipulation of the service
  • The Founder's ghost appears to the narrator during the sermon
  • Barbee directly criticizes the white trustees for their patronizing attitude

Which of the following does NOT happen in Chapter 5?

  • Reverend Barbee delivers a sermon mythologizing the Founder's life
  • The narrator discovers that Reverend Barbee is blind
  • The narrator is expelled from the college during the chapel service
  • The congregation weeps during Barbee's dramatic retelling

What does "vespers" mean as used in Chapter 5?

  • A formal academic lecture delivered by a visiting scholar
  • An evening prayer service, especially in a Christian church
  • A celebratory banquet held in honor of distinguished guests
  • A disciplinary assembly where students receive public reprimands

What does "oratory" mean in the context of Barbee's performance?

  • A private chapel or room designated for individual prayer
  • The art of public speaking, especially in a formal and persuasive manner
  • A written transcript of a speech prepared in advance for distribution
  • A musical composition performed by a choir during a religious service

What does it mean to "venerate" someone, as the institution does with the Founder?

  • To criticize or challenge someone's legacy in a public forum
  • To regard someone with great respect and quasi-religious devotion
  • To appoint someone to a position of administrative authority
  • To document someone's achievements in an official historical record

Comprehension Quiz

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