by Paul Laurence Dunbar
If you could sit with me beside the sea to-day,
And whisper with me sweetest dreamings o’er and o’er;
I think I should not find the clouds so dim and gray,
And not so loud the waves complaining at the shore.
If you could sit with me upon the shore to-day,
And hold my hand in yours as in the days of old,
I think I should not mind the chill baptismal spray,
Nor find my hand and heart and all the world so cold.
If you could walk with me upon the strand to-day,
And tell me that my longing love had won your own,
I think all my sad thoughts would then be put away,
And I could give back laughter for the Ocean’s moan!
"Longing" by Paul Laurence Dunbar
Question
Use the poem to answer the question.
How does the use of the word complaining affect meaning in the first stanza?
(1 point)
Responses
It indicates that the sea is an important character.
It indicates that the sea is an important character.
It connects the sea to the speaker’s feelings.
It connects the sea to the speaker’s feelings.
It makes the sea a negative force in the poem.
It makes the sea a negative force in the poem.
It shows that a storm is about to happen.
It shows that a storm is about to happen.
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1 answer
The correct response is:
It connects the sea to the speaker’s feelings.
In the first stanza, the use of the word "complaining" suggests that the sea's waves reflect the speaker's own emotional state. It indicates a sense of dissatisfaction and melancholy, aligning the natural imagery with the speaker's feelings of longing and despair.
