What is the consequence of spacetime curvature for the path of light and matter near a black hole?

• A. They follow straight lines in flat spacetime.
• B. They follow geodesics shaped by curvature.
• C. They are unaffected by curvature.
• D. Only light is affected, not matter.

Answer: (B)

In general relativity, light and matter move along geodesics—the straightest possible paths allowed by the curvature of spacetime. Near a black hole, spacetime is strongly curved, so these geodesics bend toward the mass. That means light follows curved paths (gravitational lensing), and matter follows curved, often spiraling or orbital trajectories. Locally, in a tiny region, spacetime can look flat, so the paths seem straight there, but on larger scales the curvature dictates the motion.

So the idea isn’t that gravity is a force pulling objects, but that the geometry of spacetime guides their natural paths. The other statements fail because they imply no effect from curvature, or limit the effect to light only, which isn’t the case for both light and matter.