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Worksheets9th grade Unit 3: Literature of the Civil Rights(whole group)
Total questions: 19
Worksheet time: 38mins
In front of which building in Washington, D.C., did Dr. King deliver his “I Have a Dream” speech?
Union Station
the White House
the National Cathedral
the Lincoln Memorial
According to “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” what is the main reason King and his followers are demonstrating and protesting in Birmingham, instead of negotiating with city leaders?
because King is affiliated with certain organizations in Birmingham
because King does not trust the white clergy to host fair negotiations
because a significant political election has just taken place in Birmingham
because Birmingham failed to keep promises made in earlier negotiations
Why does King write “Letter from Birmingham Jail”? Choose three options.
to occupy his time while he is waiting to be released from jail
to respond to well-intentioned criticism of the civil rights movement
to propose a peaceful settlement with the white police force of the city
to ask for volunteers who are supporters of the civil rights movement
to make his argument to everyone who will read the letter after its publication
Which of the following answer choices best identifies the “dream” Dr. King describes in “I Have a Dream”?
power for the poor and disadvantaged
more wealth and prosperity for all Americans
election of more public officials from minority ranks
liberty and justice for all Americans regardless of race
Which of the following situations can best be used to illustrate the meaning of prosperity?
Manuel has lots of friends, a loyal dog, a job he loves, and a nice apartment.
Toshiko likes mashed potatoes, crisp apples, dark chocolate, and peaches.
Caleb skis down the mountain every day to get to his job in the village.
Janna designs costumes for all the musicals and plays at school.
If Jon’s emotions were exalted after seeing the opera, which of the following must be true? Base your answer on the meaning of exalted.
Jon was deeply upset by the tragic story of the opera.
Jon felt uplifted in spirit by the glorious music he heard.
Jon felt soothed because the music was calm and serene.
Jon had a painful headache because the opera was so loud.
In “I Have a Dream,” what does Dr. King mean when he says that someday “the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight”?
People who oppress others will be severely punished.
National, state, and local elections will be run fairly.
Judges will be chosen on the basis of their merits.
Racial discrimination and injustice will finally end.
Which rhetorical device is represented by Dr. King’s references to “a check” and a “promissory note” in this passage from his “I Have a Dream” speech?
In a sense we’ve come to our nation’s capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir.
analogy
repetition
parellelism
restatement
Read the following excerpt from Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech:
Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.
What text is parallel ?
go back to
slums and ghettos
will be changed
knowing that somehow
Which of the following answer choices best identifies the italicized words in this sentence from Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech?
We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.
repetition
symbolism
direct quotation
charged language
In “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” King expresses discontent with the “moderates” who sympathize with but take no part in the civil rights struggle, saying:
Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection.
Which statement best explains why King would rather face outright opposition than “lukewarm acceptance”?
He believes that as long as the moderates stand passively aside, conditions cannot improve.
He believes that those who oppose the movement may persuade the moderates to join them.
He believes that because opposition is violent, it does much more harm than passive acceptance.
He believes that moderates who play no active role in the movement are secretly working against it.
Read this sentence from “Letter from Birmingham Jail”:
[T]here are two types of laws: just and unjust.
Which statement best describes the distinction King draws, in the letter, between two types of laws?
Just laws apply to deep-seated human prejudices, while unjust laws do not.
Just laws can realistically be enforced in actual life, while unjust laws cannot.
Just laws are rooted in universal principles of fairness, while unjust laws are not.
Just laws vary in harshness according to circumstances, while unjust laws do not.
Which of the following excerpts from “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is an example of an allusion?
We should never forget that everything Adolf Hitler did in Germany was “legal” and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was “illegal.”
But now I must affirm that it is just as wrong, or perhaps even more so, to use moral means to preserve immoral ends.
I wish you had commended the Negro sit inners and demonstrators of Birmingham for their sublime courage, their willingness to suffer and their amazing discipline in the midst of great provocation.
If I have said anything in this letter that overstates the truth and indicates an unreasonable impatience, I beg you to forgive me.
Which of the following sentences from “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is an example of antithesis?
My citing the creation of tension as part of the work of the nonviolent resister may sound rather shocking.
One of the basic points in your statement is that the action that I and my associates have taken in Birmingham is untimely.
My friends, I must say to you that we have not made a single gain in civil rights without determined legal and nonviolent pressure.
We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.
In “I Have a Dream,” King says that part of his purpose is “to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now.” “Letter from Birmingham Jail” also expresses the need to act swiftly on the issue of civil rights.
According to details in both selections, which answer best explains why King feels that sweeping civil rights reform is an immediate need?
because he knows that recent Nazi war crimes against Jews have won sympathy for the movement
because he fears that the black nationalists will soon thrust nonviolent protest aside
because other peoples in the world are fighting for freedom and independence
because people have already been waiting for their rights for many decades
Which of the following excerpts from “Letter from Birmingham Jail” contains an example of a rhetorical question?
In your statement you assert that our actions, even though peaceful, must be condemned because they precipitate violence. . . . Isn’t this like condemning a robbed man because his possession of money precipitated the evil act of robbery?
One of the basic points in your statement is that the action that I and my associates have taken in Birmingham is untimely. Some have asked: “Why didn’t you give the new city administration time to act?”
Perhaps it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging darts of segregation to say, “Wait.” But . . . when you have to concoct an answer for a five year old son who is asking: “Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?’’ . . . then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait.
. . . at first glance it may seem rather paradoxical for us consciously to break laws. One may well ask: “How can you advocate breaking some laws and obeying others?”
Read the following excerpt from “I Have a Dream”:
Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.
Which answer choices best describe how King’s use of parallel structure affects the impact of this passage on his listeners? Choose two options.
Parallel structure strengthens connections between ideas.
Parallel structure creates a rhythm and balance in the excerpt.
Parallel structure implies the main point rather than stating it directly.
Parallel structure employs exaggeration to get the audience’s attention.
Parallel structure uses charged language to rouse the audience’s emotions.
Which of the following sentences contains the best example of parallel structure?
The inability of the delegates to the Constitutional Convention to act on the issue of slavery led to nearly 200 years of unrest that came to a head during the civil rights movement.
Although John F. Kennedy was killed before much of his civil rights program was enacted, his successor, Lyndon B. Johnson, fulfilled his promises of justice for African Americans.
Baseball player Jackie Robinson, singer Marian Anderson, poet Langston Hughes, and minister Martin Luther King, Jr. all played crucial roles in the fight for civil rights.
Charlayne Hunter-Gault, one of nine brave students who integrated the Little Rock school system, grew up to become an internationally known journalist.
Which of the following sentences contains the best example of parallel structure?
The 1960s saw mass social and economic protests in France, Italy, Poland, and many other places besides the United States.
Martin Luther, the German religious leader for whom King was named, wrote the Ninety-Five Theses, founded a new church, and translated the Bible into German.
President Lyndon Johnson’s ambitious program of social reform, so important to King’s fight for civil rights, was partially derailed by American involvement in the Vietnam War.
When Branch Rickey hired Jackie Robinson to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers, he explained that Robinson would need courage to keep from fighting back when taunted or threatened.
