River of Angels

Question

by Alejandro Morales

Simon worked as an apprentice in the family’s business for two years; then he decided to go west. He worked his way to the coal fields of Pennsylvania, where he labored for five years. The work was hard, but worse was the constant cough he developed from the fine coal dust, the cold and dampness from the pits and mines. Although at times he worked in constant darkness from morning until night, he always had his thoughts on the setting sun. Like the obelisks in Naples, the setting sun was a constant image that pursued him while awake and asleep. One afternoon after getting his pay, he went to his room in the bachelors’ quarters, packed a small duffel bag and followed the sun to the West Coast.

Excerpt from "River of Angels" by Alejandro Morales is being reprinted with permission from the publisher (©Arte Público Press - University of Houston)

Question
Use the passage to answer the question.

In which sentence does the author use personification?

(1 point)
Responses

“Simon worked as an apprentice in the family’s business for two years; then he decided to go west.”
“Simon worked as an apprentice in the family’s business for two years; then he decided to go west.”

“Like the obelisks in Naples, the setting sun was a constant image that pursued him while awake and asleep.”
“Like the obelisks in Naples, the setting sun was a constant image that pursued him while awake and asleep.”

“The work was hard, but worse was the constant cough he developed from the fine coal dust, the cold and dampness from the pits and mines.”
“The work was hard, but worse was the constant cough he developed from the fine coal dust, the cold and dampness from the pits and mines.”

“One afternoon after getting his pay, he went to his room in the bachelors’ quarters, packed a small duffel bag and followed the sun to the West Coast.”
“One afternoon after getting his pay, he went to his room in the bachelors’ quarters, packed a small duffel bag and followed the sun to the West Coast.”
Remaining Attempts : 3

Answer 1

The sentence that contains personification is:

“Like the obelisks in Naples, the setting sun was a constant image that pursued him while awake and asleep.”

In this sentence, the sun is personified as it is described as "pursuing" Simon, which attributes a human action to a non-human entity (the sun).