Question

Read the lines from The Elements of San Joaquín.

After a day in the grape fields near Rolinda

A fine silt, washed by sweat,

Has settled into the lines

On my wrists and palms.



Already I am becoming the valley,

A soil that sprouts nothing.

For any of us.

Which detail best supports the idea that the workers’ lives are hopeless?

“A fine silt, washed by sweat,”
“into the lines / On my wrists and palms.”
“Already I am becoming the valley,”
“sprouts nothing. / For any of us.”

Answer 1

“sprouts nothing. / For any of us.”

This line directly states that nothing grows for them, symbolizing lack of hope, opportunity, or future for the workers.