Chapter 7 Quiz — Invisible Man

by Ralph Ellison

Comprehension Quiz: Chapter 7

Who does the narrator encounter on the bus ride from the South to New York?

  • Mr. Norton, the white trustee who fainted at the Golden Day
  • Dr. Bledsoe, who is traveling north to attend a trustees meeting
  • The veteran from the Golden Day, being transferred to a facility in Washington, D.C.
  • A former classmate from the college who was also recently expelled

What crucial advice does the veteran give the narrator during their bus ride?

  • He tells the narrator to open and read the sealed letters before delivering them
  • He advises the narrator to return to the college and confront Bledsoe directly
  • He warns the narrator to play the game but not believe in it, and not to trust men like Bledsoe
  • He suggests the narrator should abandon the letters and find work on his own in Harlem

How many sealed letters does the narrator carry from Dr. Bledsoe?

  • Three letters, each addressed to a different business owner in Harlem
  • Five letters, each addressed to a faculty member at a northern university
  • Seven letters, each addressed to a different white trustee of the college
  • Ten letters, each addressed to a different employer recommended by the college

What is the Men's House where the narrator stays in Harlem?

  • A private apartment building owned by one of the college trustees
  • A YMCA-like residential establishment for young Black men seeking opportunity
  • A political organization's headquarters that also provides temporary housing
  • A shelter run by a Black church for migrants recently arrived from the South

How do the white trustees typically respond when the narrator delivers Bledsoe's letters?

  • They refuse to see him and have their secretaries return the letters unopened
  • They read the letters in front of him and express shock at the contents
  • They receive him courteously but offer only vague encouragement and no concrete help
  • They promise to help immediately but then fail to follow through on their offers

What does the narrator's reaction to Harlem reveal about his Southern upbringing?

  • He finds Harlem dirty and dangerous, confirming the warnings he received at college
  • He is astonished by the confidence and visibility of Black people in ways unknown in the South
  • He immediately feels at home because Harlem reminds him of his own neighborhood
  • He is disappointed that Harlem lacks the culture and refinement of his college campus

Who is Mr. Emerson in Chapter 7?

  • The veteran's doctor at the Washington psychiatric facility
  • The owner of the Men's House where the narrator stays in Harlem
  • The trustee the narrator plans to visit last, on whom he pins his remaining hopes
  • A street-corner orator in Harlem who gives speeches about racial injustice

Why does the narrator refuse to open the sealed letters from Dr. Bledsoe?

  • He is afraid of what they might contain and prefers not to know the truth
  • Bledsoe instructed him to deliver them sealed, and his conditioning makes him obey without question
  • The letters are legally sealed documents that only the trustees are authorized to open
  • He assumes the letters are form letters and does not think their content matters

Which of the following events actually happens in Chapter 7?

  • The narrator opens one of Bledsoe's letters and discovers the truth about their contents
  • The narrator encounters the veteran from the Golden Day on the bus to New York
  • A trustee offers the narrator a temporary job in his office building
  • The narrator contacts his parents to tell them he has been expelled from college

Which of the following does NOT happen in Chapter 7?

  • The narrator arrives in Harlem and is astonished by the vibrancy of Black urban life
  • The veteran warns the narrator not to trust men like Dr. Bledsoe
  • The narrator discovers that the trustees have been told to refuse him employment
  • The narrator settles into the Men's House and begins delivering letters to trustees

In the context of Chapter 7, what does "perfunctory" mean when the trustees ask the narrator "a few perfunctory questions"?

  • Deeply curious and genuinely interested in hearing detailed answers
  • Done as a routine duty with minimal effort, without genuine interest or care
  • Aggressive and confrontational, designed to intimidate the person being questioned
  • Carefully planned and deliberately worded to extract specific information

What does "deference" mean as used in the phrase "the framework of deference and trust that the college instilled in him"?

  • Active resistance and defiance toward authority figures and their instructions
  • Intellectual curiosity and a desire to question established social hierarchies
  • Humble submission and respect shown toward a person in authority or social superior
  • Strategic pretense of agreement while secretly planning independent action

What is "dramatic irony" and how does it function in Chapter 7?

  • A character saying the opposite of what they mean, as when the trustees encourage the narrator
  • An unexpected plot twist that surprises both the reader and the characters equally
  • A situation where the reader understands more than the character, as with the sealed letters
  • The use of exaggeration for emphasis, as in the narrator's description of Harlem

Comprehension Quiz

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