Question

all understand the rules: wear
whatever’s in, scowl on cue to convince the
world we’re fearless—anything to mask
the million insecurities that
pockmark our skin like acne. Gone the grins
when we strut down the hall. We talk tough and
hope to God it’s enough to get us by. It’s all lies.

–“Jabari Unmasked,”
Nikki Grimes

Which graphical elements are used in this excerpt? Check all that apply.

very short lines
punctuation
enjambment
right justification
caesura
left justification

Answer 1

Selected: very short lines; punctuation; enjambment; caesura; left justification.

- Very short lines: several lines are short fragments (e.g., "all understand the rules: wear", "We talk tough and").
- Punctuation: colons, commas, an em dash, periods, apostrophes appear throughout.
- Enjambment: sentences carry over line breaks (e.g., "wear / whatever’s in...").
- Caesura: internal pauses created by punctuation (notably the em dash in "world we’re fearless—anything...").
- Right justification: not present (text is left-aligned).