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WorksheetsWeek 2 - Still I Rise / Mother To Son
Total questions: 15
Worksheet time: 26mins
In "Still I Rise," what does Maya Angelou mean when she says "Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave"
She means that her ancestors passed down pictures and jewelry for her to sell to her slave masters to buy her freedom.
She means that she is the reason why her ancestors endured slavery. She is saying that her ancestors knew that if they just tolerated being slaves for a few hundred years, eventually things would change.
She means that she is the physical embodiment of her ancestor's hopes and dreams. She is a free woman and she is living the life that her ancestors could only dream to live.
All of the above.
"Still I Rise" and "Mother To Son" are similar in that
They both have a female speaker
They both deal with perseverance
They are both a mother's advice to her son
All of the above
In "Mother To Son" the "crystal stair" represents
The son's beautiful, crystal blue eyes
The idyllic life that the mother has not experienced
The jewelry that her ancestors passed down to her for her to pass on to her son.
Her life experiences.
In "Still I Rise" the speaker's audience is most likely
white people, especially those wishing for her to fail
her ancestors
her children
her husband
A ____________________ is a direct comparison that does not use "like" or "as"
simile
metaphor
inference
diction
______________________ is the author's word choice
tone
inference
diction
metaphor
Diction helps us understand the author's __________
tone
inference
complex
political beliefs
Understanding the tone and diction helps us
make complex inferences to identify the main idea
understand the author's purpose
understand what the author might have been trying to teach us
All of the above
In "Mother To Son", what would be the best way to describe the speaker's tone?
Encouraging
Pessimistic
Neutral
Discouraging
Which words from "Mother to Son" best demonstrate the mother's tone?
"tacks, splinters, bare"
"I'se still climbin'"
"Don't you sit down on those steps 'cause you finds it's kinder hard"
"Life for me ain't been no crystal stair"
Which of the following best describes the author's primary purpose for writing "Still I Rise"?
The author wanted to write a letter of appreciation to her ancestors.
The author wanted to demonstrate her strength of spirit despite living in a society designed for her to fail.
The author wanted to demonstrate her ability to effectively use interesting similes and metaphors in the hopes it would one day be taught in English classes around the world.
None of the above
Which of the following is NOT a metaphor
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide
I am the dream and the hope of the slave
Life for me ain't been no crystal stair
I dance like I've got diamonds at the meeting of my thighs
Which of the following is NOT a valid interpretation of the speaker's tone in "Mother To Son"
Motivational
Inspiring
Disparaging
Encouraging
Which of the following details best summarizes "Still I Rise"
An African-American woman confronts her oppressors by asking a series of rhetorical questions followed by clever metaphors that express her self-confidence. She ends the poem by making declarative statements that connect her present life to the struggles of her ancestors, ending the poem in an uplifting fashion.
A woman acquiesces to her oppressors by showing them that she will comply with their hopes for her to be broken and weakened by the systemic oppression she faces. At the end of the poem, she hopes and dreams for freedom, but it is only in her mind, not in reality.
A former slave stands up to her masters and gains her freedom by writing a series of similes and metaphors that convince the masters to set her free. By the end of the poem, she has gained her freedom and rises into liberty.
All of the above.
Which of the following best summarizes "Mother To Son"
A mother belittles her son by telling him that his life will be empty and broken like her own staircase of life.
A mother offers realistic advice to her son telling him that life will be filled with trials and tribulations, but the key to success is to persevere.
A mother admonishes her son and warns him about the darkness that life holds.
A mother wakes her son up to the cruel reality of doing crystal.
