masks by shel silverstein

Part A: Which statement best explains the metaphorical meaning of blue skin in the poem

• In the poem, only two people in the whole world have blue skin, which means that they must be soul mates

• In the poem, blue skin is such a common trait that people must wear masks in order to appear unique

• In the poem, blue skin represents a quality that people are afraid to share even though it’s important to their identity

• In the poem, blue skin represents the sadness that people try to hide by always being polite and keeping smiles on their faces

Part B: Which quote from the poem best supports the answer to Part A?

• “She has blue skin”

• “Kept it hid”

• “Searched for blue”

• “Never knew”

How does the illustration contribute to the meaning of the poem?

• The size of the mask in the illustration emphasizes how hard people try to hide their true selves

• The simplicity of the drawing shows that being your true self is easy to do

• The masks facing opposite directions in the illustration show that lying will get you nowhere

• The different hairstyles in the drawing show that just because two people have blue skin doesn’t mean they are alike in every way