How does the repetition of “then” contribute to the speaker’s tone?
A. It emphasizes their willingness to teach society to be more open-minded.
B. It emphasizes their willingness to blend in with their friends and comrades.
C. It emphasizes their frustration at not being able to meet society’s expectations.
D. It emphasizes their frustration at not being able to find friends who accept them.
What does the pattern of opposing ideas in lines 1-6 suggest about the relationship between the speaker and their friends and comrades?
A. that the speaker and their friends struggle to communicate
B. that the speaker and their friends have opposing perspectives
C. that the speaker’s friends want them to be accepted by society
D. that the speaker’s friends may never accept them for who they are
Why did the author most likely choose to write lines 1-11 without punctuation?
A. to mimic the speaker’s patience with their friends’ rules
B. to mimic the division between the speaker and their friends
C. to mimic the compassion the speaker’s friends feel for them
D. to mimic the endless flow of demands from the speaker’s friends
What does the stanza break between lines 15 and 16 indicate?
A. the speaker’s decision to stand up for themself
B. a change in the way the speaker views themself
C. a change in the way the speaker’s friends now treat them
D. the speaker’s realization that their friends’ ideas reflect society’s view
1. C. It emphasizes their frustration at not being able to meet society’s expectations.
The repetition of “then” highlights the speaker’s growing sense of frustration, as each “then” signifies an unmet expectation or a societal demand that they are struggling to fulfill.
2. B. that the speaker and their friends have opposing perspectives.
The pattern of opposing ideas suggests a disconnect between the speaker and their friends, indicating that they see the world differently and may not fully understand each other’s viewpoints.
3. D. to mimic the endless flow of demands from the speaker’s friends.
The absence of punctuation creates a sense of continuous thought, mirroring how the speaker perceives the constant and overwhelming demands placed on them by their friends.
4. A. the speaker’s decision to stand up for themself.
The stanza break signifies a turning point in the poem, suggesting that the speaker is asserting their identity and choosing to advocate for their own beliefs and values.