Sympathy
by Paul Laurence Dunbar
I KNOW what the caged bird feels, alas!
When the sun is bright on the upland slopes;
When the wind stirs soft through the springing grass,
And the river flows like a stream of glass;
When the first bird sings and the first bud opes,
And the faint perfume from its chalice steals -
I know what the caged bird feels!
I know why the caged bird beats his wing
Till its blood is red on the cruel bars;
For he must fly back to his perch and cling
When he fain would be on the bough a-swing;
And a pain still throbs in the old, old scars
And they pulse again with a keener sting -
I know why he beats his wing!
I know why the caged bird sings, ah me,
When his wing is bruised and his bosom sore, -
When he beats his bars and he would be free;
It is not a carol of joy or glee,
But a prayer that he sends from his heart's deep core,
But a plea, that upward to Heaven he flings -
I know why the caged bird sings!
An Account of an Experience With Discrimination
by Sojourner Truth
A few weeks ago I was in company with my friend Josephine S. Griffing, when the conductor of a streetcar refused to stop his car for me, although (I was) closely following Josephine and holding on to the iron rail. They dragged us a number of yards before she succeeded in stopping them. She reported the conductor to the president of the City Railway, who dismissed him at once, and told me to take the number of the car whenever I was mistreated by a conductor or driver. On the 13th I had occasion to go for necessities for the patients in the Freedmen's Hospital where I have been doing and advising for a number of months. I thought now I would get a ride without trouble as I was in company with another friend, Laura S. Haviland of Michigan. As I ascended the platform of the car, the conductor pushed me, saying "Go back--get off here." I told him I was not going off, then "I'll put you off" said he furiously, clenching my right arm with both hands, using such violence that he seemed about to succeed, when Mrs. Haviland told him he was not going to put me off. "Does she belong to you?" said he in a hurried angry tone. She replied, "She does not belong to me, but she belongs to humanity." The number of the car was noted, and conductor dismissed at once upon the report to the president, who advised his arrest for assault and battery as my shoulder was sprained by his effort to put me off. Accordingly I had him arrested and the case tried before Justice Thompson. My shoulder was very lame and swollen, but is better. It is hard for the old slaveholding spirit to die. But die it must....
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1) "Sympathy" is considered to be a poem. Which element is unique to poetry?
A)stanzas <---
B)conflict
C)character
D)story telling
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2) Both texts deal with racial discrimination. How does the structure of poem help convey this meaning in a way that the prose passage does not?
A) The poem conveys meaning through imagery; the prose passage does not.
B) The poem uses first person point of view; the prose passage does not.
C) The poem conveys meaning through metaphor; the prose passage does not.<---
D) The poem conveys meaning through its rhyme scheme; the prose passage does not.
Eliminate
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3)How does Sojourner Truth’s use of personal narrative as a literary form influence the reader's experience of the second passage?
A)It makes Sojourner Truth appear to be a reliable source because she had firsthand experience with discrimination <---
B)It does not impact the reader at all.
C)It makes the reader wonder if what Sojourner says is true or if she is lying.
D)It makes reading the passage difficult because the reader cannot personally relate to Sojourner Truth.
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4)How do these two texts differently evoke the trials and tribulations of slavery and racism?
A)The poem is filled with anger at the racial oppression experienced, while the short story has a tone of moral acceptance.
B)While the short story tells the story from the perspective of the oppressor, the poem tells its story from the side of the oppressed.
C)The poem evokes emotion in response to racial oppression in the abstract, while the story focuses upon the effects of a specific act of racism.
D)The poem has a more masculine perspective on what it feels like to be racially oppressed, while the short story focuses on the feminine side of the equation. <---
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5)How does the reader know that the second passage is a personal narrative rather than drama?
A)The author uses the elements of plot. <---
B)The author uses paragraph form.
C)The author uses dialogue.
D)The author uses figurative language.
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6)How might a dramatic portrayal of the second passage impact the audience in a different way than the personal narrative?
A)A dramatic portrayal will be more descriptive than the personal narrative since the language will be more precise.<--
B)A dramatic portrayal will confuse the audience since this personal narrative could not be acted out.
C)A dramatic portrayal will be more shocking to the audience since the violence will be acted out on a stage.
D)A dramatic portrayal would be very silent since there is no dialogue in the personal narrative.
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7)How do the two passages compare in their use of literary point of view?
A)Both the poem and the prose piece are written from a third person perspective.
B)Both the poem and the prose piece are written from a first person point of view. <---
C)The poem is written from third person perspective, while the prose piece is written in first person perspective.
D)The prose piece is written from third person perspective, while the poem is written in first person perspective.
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8)How do the two passages compare in their presentation of themes?
A)Both the poem and the prose piece are about the frustrations and hardships of racism.
B)The poem laments the pain of racism, while the prose piece is an unsympathetic account of discrimination. <---
C)Both the poem and the prose piece are about rejoicing over the triumphs of the modern civil rights movement.
D)The prose piece blames African-Americans for their submission to racism, while the poem defends their choices.
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9)How might Sojourner Truth be able to relate to the 'caged bird' who sings in Paul Lawrence Dunbar's poem?
A)Sojourner Truth felt like the train was a cage she could not get out of and like the bird, she was hurt by the conductor while trying to escape from the train.
B)There is no connection between Sojourner Truth and the caged bird from the poem.
C)Sojourner's friend tells her a story about feeling like a 'caged bird' that Sojourner can relate to.
D)After her experience on the train, Sojourner Truth feels like the caged bird - battered by the cage of discrimination but hopeful for a better future.<---
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10)Which characteristic of the first passage best indicates to readers that it is a poem rather than prose?
A)The use of active verbs.
B)The development of a tone.
C)The description of the conflict.
Eliminate
D)The A-B-A-A-B-C-C rhyme scheme.<---
I disagree with your answers for these questions: 4, 5, 6, 8
I think your other answers are correct.
Thank You ! (:
4. C
5. D
6. B
8. A
Im not sure, this is pretty hard.
4 and 8 are right now.
Since I've checked your answers twice, I won't check them again. Please do not post these questions again.