Tuesday’s with Morrie: An Old Man, A Young Man, and Life’s Greatest Lesson

Chapters 1-5

1. Brandeis University (Chapter 1)

2. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ASL)/Lou Gehrig’s disease (Chapter 2)

3. He is a journalist. (Chapter 3)

4. On Nightline (Chapter 4)

5. Coach (Chapter 5)

Short Answer

1. The subject of Tuesdays with Morrie is Morrie’s final “class,” and so Albom introduces the subject and end result of this class, which is the book in the reader’s hands. (Chapter 1)

2. Morrie doesn’t want to feel like he’s fading away or is useless. (Chapter 2, 4)

3. Morrie asked whether he preferred “Mitch” or “Mitchell,” and Mitch had never been asked that. It shows how kind and thoughtful Morrie is. (Chapter 4)

Chapters 6-10

1. Love (Chapter 6)

2. They will meet on Tuesdays. (Chapter 7)

3. Himself (Chapter 8)

4. In the morning (Chapter 9)

Short Answer

1. He realized he sidelined his college dreams in hopes of getting a larger paycheck. (Chapter 6)

2. He felt like it was less consumed by material things like celebrities and gossip. Rather, Morrie had a life of intellect, friendship, and giving. (Chapter 7)

3. He feels as though he’ll be a baby one last time and decides to enjoy being dependent. (Chapter 8)

4. He wants to feel like he has a piece of Morrie preserved. (Chapter 10)

Chapters 11-15

1. Ted Koppel (Chapter 11)

2. He sold newspapers. (Chapter 12)

3. Two (Chapter 13)

4. Purpose (Chapter 15)

Short Answer

1. He is afraid of losing his ability to communicate, which is important to him. (Chapter 11)

2. After visiting his father at a factory, Morrie swears not to exploit anyone at work. He doesn’t like lawyers and is afraid of blood, so he can’t be a doctor. That makes him decide to become a teacher. (Chapter 12)

3. People wouldn’t waste so much of their lives. (Chapter 13)

4. Morrie tries to feel all of his feelings fully so as not to repeat the common mistake people make of avoiding feelings because they are afraid of what they will cause. (Chapter 15)

5. Morrie is somewhat trapped in his body, and gazelles can run free. (Chapter 15)

Chapters 16-21

1. The anti-war movement or Civil Rights movement (Chapter 16)

2. Through love (Chapter 19)

3. Janine (Chapter 20)

Short Answer

1. He showed them compassion and treated them like real people. (Chapter 16)

2. They gave these As to make sure that the students were able to stay on deferral and not be drafted while in school. (Chapter 16)

3. He knows that every age he’s ever been is within him. (Chapter 17)

4. He feels as though he is one of those people and that he has been too focused on his career. (Chapter 18)

5. He feels as though people fear they could lose their job at any second or be judged for their appearance or wealth. (Chapter 21)

Chapters 22-Afterword

1. Ted greets him by kissing him on the cheek. (Chapter 22)

2. His advice is to be compassionate. (Chapter 22)

3. His regret is that he never made up with a friend. (Chapter 23)

Short Answer

1. Mitch feels connected to Morrie, and Morrie appreciates the human touch. (Chapter 23)

2. Morrie believes Mitch will find his way back to his brother because Mitch found his way back to Morrie. (Chapter 24)

3. Morrie might feel like he got through to Mitch in getting him to feel his emotions. (Chapter 25)

4. He would tell himself to pay more attention to others and to visit Morrie more. (Chapter 27)