Question

Analyzing Literary Text Unit Test
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Feature


Still I Rise
by Maya Angelou

Does my sassiness upset you?

Why are you beset with gloom?

'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells

Pumping in my living room. . . .

Does my haughtiness offend you?

Don't you take it awful hard

'Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines

Diggin' in my own back yard.



"Still I Rise" from AND STILL I RISE: A BOOK OF POEMS by Maya Angelou, copyright
© 1978 by Maya Angelou. Used by permission of Random House, an imprint and division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved.

Question
Use the lines to answer the question.

What interpretation is supported by the poet’s use of rhetorical questions in these lines? Select the two correct answers.

(1 point)
Responses

She offers an alternative definition of wealth and what it involves.
She offers an alternative definition of wealth and what it involves.

She shows defiance and boldness in the face of oppression and suffering.
She shows defiance and boldness in the face of oppression and suffering.

She alludes to other stories that support the themes of the poem.
She alludes to other stories that support the themes of the poem.

She feels she has the ability to control others even though they are unaware.
She feels she has the ability to control others even though they are unaware.

She is confident in her own abilities and in her beauty and power.

Answer 1

The two correct interpretations supported by the poet's use of rhetorical questions in the lines from "Still I Rise" are:

1. **She shows defiance and boldness in the face of oppression and suffering.**
2. **She is confident in her own abilities and in her beauty and power.**

These interpretations reflect how the rhetorical questions challenge the reader and convey the speaker's strength and resilience despite adversity.