Study Questions
1. To what famous black actor does the narrator compare himself?

2. How does the narrator describe the woman with whom he discusses ideology?

3. Once inside the woman’s spacious apartment, what does the narrator think to himself that he would do if he were really free?

4. From whom does the woman receive a phone call?

5. What does the woman’s husband ask his wife to do in the morning?

6. How does the narrator feel when he arranges a second meeting with the woman?

7. Why is the narrator late to the meeting to which he has been summoned?

8. What is Brother Jack’s mood on the subject of Brother Clifton’s disappearance?

9. Whom does the narrator think might be connected to Clifton’s disappearance?

10. What image does the narrator use to describe his mood at the end of the chapter?

Answers
1. The narrator compares himself to Paul Robeson, a famous black actor (and political activist/author) of the 1930s and 1940s.

2. The narrator describes the woman with whom he discusses ideology as “a small, delicately plump woman with raven hair.”

3. Once inside the woman’s spacious apartment, the narrator thinks to himself that if he were really free, he would leave.

4. The woman receives a phone call from her sister.

5. The woman’s husband asks his wife to wake him early in the morning because he has a lot of work to do.

6. The narrator feels a “mixture of relief and anxiety” when he arranges a second meeting with the woman.

7. He is late to the meeting to which he has been summoned because he was working on some last minute details regarding his lectures.

8. Brother Jack’s mood on the subject of Brother Clifton’s disappearance is one of anger and impatience; he says that Ras the Exhorter and his men have taken advantage of the situation to step up their agitation work.

9. The narrator wonders if Ras the Exhorter might be connected to Clifton’s disappearance.

10. At the end of the chapter, the narrator says that he feels as though he has awoken from a deep sleep.