Mother to Son Poem

The extended metaphor of life being compared to a staircase helps the reader--

• feel sorry for the struggling mother.

• want a better life for the speaker’s son.

• understand that the speaker’s life has been a constant struggle.

• realize that the speaker feels as if her life will never get any better.

The mother says that “Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.” Used in this context, “crystal" means

• transparent and colorless.

• sharp and painful.

• beautiful and flawed.

• clear and smooth.

The tone of the poem "Mother To Son" is

• Light and fun

• Serious sharing of important information

• Angry and disappointed

The author’s use of a stairway to represent life is an example of

• an allusion.

• a hyperbole.

• a metaphor.

• personification.

   In this poem, boards with “tacks and splinters” and “boards torn up” are symbols for

• Run-down housing.

• A life that has had many difficulties and challenges.

• The ungrateful way the mother’s son treats her.

• The lack of compassion each man has for his fellow man

Why is a “stairway” a particularly appropriate metaphor to describe the wisdom the mother is trying to impart to her son?

• Stairways are almost always dirty and rough.

• One has to clean and wax a stairway to make it look good.

• A stairway takes steady persistence to climb and it can go up and down.

• Stairways are often found in expensive houses.

The author of this poem is

• Langston Hughes

• Steve Jobs

• Brian Hughes

When the mother says that her life hasn't been no crystal stair, it could mean that she has likely NOT had a life of.....

• heating and air-conditioning

• luxury

• electricity

How could Langston Hughes (a man) write a poem

called "Mother to Son"?

• He could have been the son receiving this conversation from his mother.

• He could have overheard a mother giving her son this talk.

• An author/poet can become anyone at any time.

• All of these are possibilities.

The poem "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes uses dialect. Which of the following sentences give an example of dialect?

• "Let me tell you son,...."

• "LIfe has been a staircase with tacks and splinters."

• For I’se still goin’, honey,

  I’se still climbin’,

• "So boy, don't you turn back"