WorksheetsThe Letter to Theodore Roosevelt Test
Total questions: 25
Worksheet time: 13mins
Rhetoric is the art or skill of speaking or writing formally and effectively, especially as a way to persuade or influence people
Rhetorical devices are a writing or speaking techniques that help to make arguments more persuasive.
a mansion of her own
Select all that apply-
Examples of rhetorical devices in the text may be:
figures of speech that the author uses, such as metaphor and personification
sound devices that the author uses, such as alliteration
rhetorical questions
rhetorical appeals like ethos, pathos, logos
What is the definition of authors perspective?
a way of expressing something in writing or speech that is developed using various techniques
an author’s reason for writing, such as to entertain, to inform, or to persuade
the way the author regards a topic or subject, and his or her attitude toward it
none of the above
What is the definition of author's purpose?
a way of expressing something in writing or speech that is developed using various techniques
an author’s reason for writing, such as to entertain, to inform, or to persuade
the way the author regards a topic or subject, and his or her attitude toward it
none of the above
What is the definition of author's STYLE
a way of expressing something in writing or speech that is developed using various techniques
an author’s reason for writing, such as to entertain, to inform, or to persuade
the way the author regards a topic or subject, and his or her attitude toward it
none of the above
Reread paragraphs 1–4 of the letter. Then answer the multiple-choice questions that follow.
From “Letter to Theodore Roosevelt” by Mother Jones
1 Being citizens of the United States of America, we, members of the textile industry, take the liberty of addressing this appeal to you. As Chief Executive of the United States, you are, in a sense, our father and leader, and as such we look to you for advice and guidance. Perhaps the crime of child slavery has never been forcibly brought to your notice.
2 Yet, as father of us all, surely the smallest detail must be of interest to you. In Philadelphia, Pa., there are ninety thousand (90,000) textile workers who are on strike, asking for a reduction from sixty to fifty-five hours a week. With machinery, Mr. President, we believe that forty-eight hours is sufficient.
3 If the United States Senate had passed the eight-hour bill, this strike might not have occurred. We also ask that the children be taken from the industrial prisons of this nation, and given their right of attending schools, so that in years to come better citizens will be given to this republic.
4 These little children, raked by cruel toil beneath the iron wheels of greed, are starving in this country which you have declared is in the height of prosperity—slaughtered, ten hours a day, every day in the week, every week in the month, every month in the year, that our manufacturing aristocracy may live to exploit more slaves as the years roll by.
In which line, does the author most effectively use ethos by appealing to the reader's sense of moral principles?
“We also ask that the children be taken from the industrial prisons of this nation, and given their right of attending schools, so that in years to come better citizens will be given to this republic.”
“Being citizens of the United States of America, we, members of the textile industry, take the liberty of addressing this appeal to you.”
“In Philadelphia, Pa., there are ninety thousand (90,000) textile workers who are on strike, asking for a reduction from sixty to fifty-five hours a week.”
“If the United States Senate had passed the eight-hour bill, this strike might not have occurred.”
How does this use of rhetoric help the writer achieve her purpose overall?
This use of logos shows that children enjoy being in school more than they enjoy working sixty hours a week in the factories owned by rich textile merchants.
This use of ethos works to convince President Theodore Rooselvelt to meet with Mother Jones and the child laborers once they reach his home in New York.
This use of pathos shows that changing the work week will not be worth it if it costs millions of children their health and childhoods.
This use of ethos demonstrates Mother Jones’s deeper argument that child labor is not only hurting young people today, but it’s damaging to the country’s future citizens.
What is the author’s reason for using rhetorical questioning in the line, “We ask you, Mr. President, if our commercial greatness has not cost us too much by being built upon the quivering hearts of helpless children?”
To challenge the President to reconsider the moral cost of industrial progress.
To suggest that child labor is a necessary sacrifice for economic success.
To provide an economic argument for ending child labor.
To question the validity of the President's policies on manufacturing.
How does the author’s use of hyperbole in the phrase “slaughtered, ten hours a day, every day in the week, every week in the month, every month in the year” contribute to the letter’s purpose?
It exaggerates the working conditions of children to discredit the manufacturers.
It emphasizes the relentless nature of child labor, to evoke anger and sympathy.
It highlights the benefits of industrial efficiency achieved through child labor
It shifts the focus from child labor to other forms of worker exploitation.
How does the use of the metaphor “industrial prisons” strengthen the author’s purpose in this paragraph?
It emphasizes the strict discipline and structure within industrial workplaces.
It compares the conditions of factories to prisons to show that children receive protection and oversight.
It highlights the economic necessity of child labor in supporting industrial progress.
It portrays factories as places where children are confined and deprived of freedom, evoking sympathy and outrage.
Reread paragraphs 6 –9 of the letter. Then answer the multiple-choice questions that follow.
From “Letter to President Theodore Roosevelt” by Mother Jones
6 The manufacturers have threatened to starve these children, and we seek to show that no child shall die of hunger at the will of any manufacturer in this fair land. The clergy, whose work this really is, are silent on the crime of ages, and so we appeal to you.
7 It is in the hope that the words of Christ will be more clearly interpreted by you when he said "Suffer little children to come unto me." Our destination is New York City, and after that Oyster Bay. As your children, may we hope to have the pleasure of an audience? We only ask that you advise us as to the best course.
8 In Philadelphia alone thousands of persons will wait upon your answer, while throughout the land, wherever there is organized labor, the people will anxiously await an expression of your sentiments toward suffering childhood.
9 On behalf of these people, we beg that you will reply and let us know whether we may expect an audience.
Which use of syntax distinguishes Mother Jones’s position as the position of working people, children, and their families?
“The manufacturers have threatened to starve these children . . .”
“On behalf of these people, we beg you will reply . . .”
“The clergy, whose work this really is, are silent on the crime of ages . . .”
“It is in the hope that the words of Christ will be more clearly interpreted by you . . .”
What does Mother Jones’s diction, evidenced in her choice of words such as suffer and hope, suggest about the reason she wrote the letter?
to inform readers about the unfair working condition with facts
to encourage readers to write letters to their senators for help
to persuade readers and stress her opinion by using emotional words
to explain the processes in the textile industry with descriptions
