Vietnam War Memorial

Which of these statements expresses the main idea of “The Vietnam Wall”?

• The Vietnam Wall lists the names of those who died in the Vietnam War.

• The Vietnam Wall records the deaths of the speaker’s friends and relatives.

• The Vietnam Wall resembles the scar that is left from an appendix operation.

• The Vietnam Wall has a powerful emotional effect on the people who visit it.

Which of these statements best evaluates the effect of the short, choppy lines at the beginning of “The Vietnam Wall”?

• They capture a tone of childlike wonder.

• They suggest that the speaker is contradicting himself.

• They help show that visiting the wall is an emotional experience.

• They help convey that the wall means different things to different people.

In the simile in lines 4–5, what does the speaker mean when he compares visiting the wall to cutting onions?

• Visiting the wall brings on sudden crying.

• Visiting the wall requires close attention.

• Visiting the wall is like peeling layer after layer.

• Visiting the wall leaves a bad taste in your mouth.

Why is comparing the Vietnam Wall to a scar appropriate?

• Many people were injured.

• A scar is what remains of the pain that was suffered by many.

• Many veterans have scars from the war.

• War leaves you with many scars.

dig \dĭg\ v 1. to break up and move earth 2. Informal to like very much 3. Informal to take notice of n 1. a push or poke with the finger 2. a sharp, sarcastic remark 3. a site being excavated to find artifacts from the past

Which definition clarifies the meaning of dig as it is used in line 10?

• Verb definition 2

• Verb definition 3

• Noun definition 2

• Noun definition 3

Taller than I am: I have walked

Into a grave.

What does the speaker most likely mean with the figurative language in lines 20–21?

• I have walked into a trap.

• I have walked into a silent place.

• I have walked into a forbidden place.

• I have walked into a sad memorial for the dead.

The boys in the street want to give.

One name. And then more

Names, long lines, lines of names until

They are the shape of the U.N. building

Taller than I am: I have walked

Into a grave.

And everything I expect has been taken away, like that, quick:

The names are not alphabetized.

They are in the order of dying.

An alphabet of—somewhere—screaming.

What do the details about the wall in lines 16–24 most clearly show about the Vietnam War itself?

• The war lasted for a very long time.

• The death rate rose as the war progressed.

• Those who died came from all over the world.

• There was great confusion about those who died.

Which punctuation most clearly helps convey the pain and sorrow of those visiting the wall?

• Colons in line 3

  And I like it: The magic,

• The commas in lines 13-15

  Easy, a little black marble wall

  Of a dollhouse,

  A smoothness, a shine

• The dashes in line 25

  An alphabet of—somewhere—screaming.

• The Accent mark in line 29

  Severiano Ríos.

Which action best completes the chart showing what the speaker does at the wall?

• He puts flowers in the cracks between the wall's sections.

• He starts to walk out.

• He recalls his years as a boy in junior high school.

• He pinches himself.

The description of the little kids and junior high school boys show that they are-

• Respectfully grieving

• Openly grieving

• Detached

• Hyper