Not My Bones

How is the SPEAKER of the poem best described?

• a skeleton

• the soul

• weeds and wind

• the stars, sun, and moon

In the poem, the narrator uses repetition in saying, "I was not this body/I was not these bones". How does this phrase CONTRIBUTE to the meaning of this poem?

• She is saying that her bones and her body are not really there.

• She is making a point that a person is much more than what one can see ~ the soul and heart of a person is of ultimate importance/NOT the body itself!

• She is saying that her body might belong to her master, but she shouldn't be made to work like a slave because she isn't one.

• She is saying that people are sometimes violently mean and ruthless and that she would never own another individual because it is just wrong!

What does the speaker mean in the simile she uses in lines 15-19? Which statement BEST represents the idea in the SIMILE itself?

• That a person is not just his/her body

• No body should own somebody else

• That thinking a person is just what you see (just the body) is like a horseless bridle trying to go on its own.....it would be empty!

• Comparing life to love of living

Tags

CCSS.L.7.5A

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.7.4

Why does Nelson most likely use the word "itty-bitty' to describe the people's voices in line 38 of "Not My Bones"?

• When you praise something, you should do so quietly.

• A voice will eventually disappear, so it's very tiny

• The world is filled with an enormous amount of voices, so one is very small in the midst!

• The stars are way too far away to hear the voices, so it makes one voice seem very small!

Tags

CCSS.L.7.4A

CCSS.L.7.5C

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.7.4

Why does the speaker in "Not My bones" use repetition of the phrase "glad to be free" in lines 41-42 of the poem?

• Saying it several times emphasizes the speaker's happiness.

• Repeating the phrase demonstrates Nelson's confusion.

• The speaker cannot believe that the situation is real.

• The speaker reiterates it because Nelson thinks it is a lie.

Tags

CCSS.L.7.5D

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.7.4

In considering the CENTRAL IDEA and the THEME of the poem, it could be stated to best emphasize.....

• the speaker's love for others

• differences seen among all races and mankind in general

• difficulties in the search for freedom

• strength of enslaved people's hope

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.2

Which statement best indicates what "Not My Bones" suggests about slavery?

• that it is not fun

• that a person's essential nature (who they truly are) can never be enslaved

• that it's illegal to make someone a slave

• that a person who is a slave does not have the strength or courage to fight for him/herself

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.7.2

The speaker in "Not My Bones" would be UNAFRAID of the idea of death. This is EVIDENCED by how he/she

• has already experienced a wonderful life

• states that people are much more than their bodies

• wants to live in the sky among the stars

• has other things to marvel at/look forward to in life