Based on the author’s details in the passage, the character of the old man can best be described as fearful. The text illustrates his terror and distress as he lies awake in bed, listening for sounds and grappling with his overwhelming sense of dread. He is portrayed as being consumed by fear, struggling to convince himself that the noises he hears are harmless, while in reality, he is deeply aware of the impending danger.
The Tell Tale Heart
by Edgar Allen Poe
I had my head in, and was about to open the lantern, when my thumb slipped upon the tin fastening, and the old man sprang up in bed, crying out—”Who’s there?”
I kept quite still and said nothing. For a whole hour I did not move a muscle, and in the meantime I did not hear him lie down. He was still sitting up in the bed listening;—just as I have done, night after night, hearkening to the death watches in the wall.
Presently I heard a slight groan, and I knew it was the groan of mortal terror. It was not a groan of pain or of grief—oh, no!—it was the low stifled sound that arises from the bottom of the soul when overcharged with awe. I knew the sound well. Many a night, just at midnight, when all the world slept, it has welled up from my own bosom, deepening, with its dreadful echo, the terrors that distracted me. I say I knew it well. I knew what the old man felt, and pitied him, although I chuckled at heart. I knew that he had been lying awake ever since the first slight noise, when he had turned in the bed. His fears had been ever since growing upon him. He had been trying to fancy them causeless, but could not. He had been saying to himself—”It is nothing but the wind in the chimney—it is only a mouse crossing the floor,” or “It is merely a cricket which has made a single chirp.” Yes, he had been trying to comfort himself with these suppositions: but he had found all in vain. All in vain; because Death, in approaching him had stalked with his black shadow before him, and enveloped the victim. And it was the mournful influence of the unperceived shadow that caused him to feel—although he neither saw nor heard—to feel the presence of my head within the room.
"The Tell Tale Heart" by Edgar Allen Poe
Use the passage to answer the question.
How would you describe the character of the old man, based on the author’s details?
(1 point)
Responses
fearful
fearful
unconcerned
unconcerned
unaware
unaware
cruel
11 answers
Use the excerpt from Walden by Henry David Thoreau to answer the question.
I find it wholesome to be alone the greater part of the time. To be in company, even with the best, is soon wearisome and dissipating. I love to be alone. I never found the companion that was so companionable as solitude. We are for the most part more lonely when we go abroad among men than when we stay in our chambers. A man thinking or working is always alone, let him be where he will. Solitude is not measured by the miles of space that intervene between a man and his fellows.
What is the best way to interpret the paradox “I never found the companion that was so companionable as solitude”?
(1 point)
Responses
He is asking them to consider the benefits of having companions.
He is asking them to consider the benefits of having companions.
He is asking them to consider the benefits of spending time alone.
He is asking them to consider the benefits of spending time alone.
He is asking them to focus on the importance of close relationships.
He is asking them to focus on the importance of close relationships.
He is asking them to focus on the downside of being lonely.
I find it wholesome to be alone the greater part of the time. To be in company, even with the best, is soon wearisome and dissipating. I love to be alone. I never found the companion that was so companionable as solitude. We are for the most part more lonely when we go abroad among men than when we stay in our chambers. A man thinking or working is always alone, let him be where he will. Solitude is not measured by the miles of space that intervene between a man and his fellows.
What is the best way to interpret the paradox “I never found the companion that was so companionable as solitude”?
(1 point)
Responses
He is asking them to consider the benefits of having companions.
He is asking them to consider the benefits of having companions.
He is asking them to consider the benefits of spending time alone.
He is asking them to consider the benefits of spending time alone.
He is asking them to focus on the importance of close relationships.
He is asking them to focus on the importance of close relationships.
He is asking them to focus on the downside of being lonely.
The best way to interpret the paradox “I never found the companion that was so companionable as solitude” is that he is asking them to consider the benefits of spending time alone. Thoreau expresses a deep appreciation for solitude and suggests that time spent alone can be more fulfilling and enriching than time spent in the company of others.
Macbeth
by William Shakespeare
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
From Macbeth by William Shakespeare
Use the passage to answer the question.
How does the analogy in this excerpt from Shakespeare’s Macbeth help to develop meaning?
(1 point)
Responses
It hints that some lives are better lived than others.
It hints that some lives are better lived than others.
It highlights the fact that life is fleeting.
It highlights the fact that life is fleeting.
It gives a clue as to how the characters wanted to live their lives.
by William Shakespeare
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
From Macbeth by William Shakespeare
Use the passage to answer the question.
How does the analogy in this excerpt from Shakespeare’s Macbeth help to develop meaning?
(1 point)
Responses
It hints that some lives are better lived than others.
It hints that some lives are better lived than others.
It highlights the fact that life is fleeting.
It highlights the fact that life is fleeting.
It gives a clue as to how the characters wanted to live their lives.
The analogy in this excerpt from Shakespeare’s Macbeth helps to develop meaning by highlighting the fact that life is fleeting. The comparison of life to a "walking shadow" and a "poor player" emphasizes the transient and ultimately insignificant nature of human existence, suggesting that life is short and ultimately lacks lasting significance.
Sinking and Swaddled
by Beth Gilstrap
She swore she felt the earth drop—like a hitch in an elevator—several miles from her mother’s house. She thought of all those bedlinens agitated, curled, heaped on top of her mother, sunk along with everything else, beams, roof tiles, the acrylic nails her mom wore, the senselessness of waste.
"Sinking and Swaddled" from Deadheading and Other Stories © Beth Gilstrap. Published by Red Hen Press, 2021.
Use the passage to answer the question.
The author’s use of words like drop and agitated denote which type of literary device, which conveys the feeling of movement and action?
(1 point)
Responses
auditory imagery
auditory imagery
tactile imagery
tactile imagery
kinesthetic imagery
kinesthetic imagery
visual imagery
visual imagery
by Beth Gilstrap
She swore she felt the earth drop—like a hitch in an elevator—several miles from her mother’s house. She thought of all those bedlinens agitated, curled, heaped on top of her mother, sunk along with everything else, beams, roof tiles, the acrylic nails her mom wore, the senselessness of waste.
"Sinking and Swaddled" from Deadheading and Other Stories © Beth Gilstrap. Published by Red Hen Press, 2021.
Use the passage to answer the question.
The author’s use of words like drop and agitated denote which type of literary device, which conveys the feeling of movement and action?
(1 point)
Responses
auditory imagery
auditory imagery
tactile imagery
tactile imagery
kinesthetic imagery
kinesthetic imagery
visual imagery
visual imagery
The author's use of words like "drop" and "agitated" denotes kinesthetic imagery, which conveys the feeling of movement and action. Kinesthetic imagery relates to the sensation of movement and physical events, effectively capturing the dynamic sensations in the passage.
Which description is an example of dramatic irony?(1 point)
Responses
A wife cuts and sells her hair to buy a watch chain for her husband, who has sold his watch to buy combs for her hair.
A wife cuts and sells her hair to buy a watch chain for her husband, who has sold his watch to buy combs for her hair.
A marriage counselor files for divorce from her fourth husband.
A marriage counselor files for divorce from her fourth husband.
A roofing contractor on a multistory building has a fear of heights.
A roofing contractor on a multistory building has a fear of heights.
A person is asked how something tastes, and he states that it is awful and then proceeds to eat several more bites.
Responses
A wife cuts and sells her hair to buy a watch chain for her husband, who has sold his watch to buy combs for her hair.
A wife cuts and sells her hair to buy a watch chain for her husband, who has sold his watch to buy combs for her hair.
A marriage counselor files for divorce from her fourth husband.
A marriage counselor files for divorce from her fourth husband.
A roofing contractor on a multistory building has a fear of heights.
A roofing contractor on a multistory building has a fear of heights.
A person is asked how something tastes, and he states that it is awful and then proceeds to eat several more bites.
The description that is an example of dramatic irony is a wife cuts and sells her hair to buy a watch chain for her husband, who has sold his watch to buy combs for her hair.
In this scenario, the audience is aware of the irony of the situation: both characters make sacrifices for each other, but their efforts are ultimately in vain because each gift is rendered useless by the other's corresponding action. This creates a poignant sense of dramatic irony, as the characters are unaware of the futility of their sacrifices while the audience understands the situation fully.
The Slow March of Light
by Heather B. Moore
One of the men stepped in front of her, so she stepped around him, but he moved again.
“Let me pass,” she said in a low voice.
“Where are you from?” he said.
Luisa glanced up at him. He needed a shave, but otherwise, he looked like most men in East Berlin. Dark clothing, face too thin, eyes haunted.
“Leave her be,” came a sharp reprimand behind them. An elderly woman emerged from the entryway of the apartment building they were next to. She clutched a threadbare shawl about her bony shoulders.
The Slow March of Light © Heather B. Moore, published by Shadow Mountain Publishing
Use the paragraphs to answer the question.
How does the author’s use of imagery in the fourth and fifth paragraphs convey information about the historical setting?
(1 point)
Responses
The imagery implies that people in East Berlin did not get enough to eat.
The imagery implies that people in East Berlin did not get enough to eat.
The imagery shows how people in East Berlin supported one another.
The imagery shows how people in East Berlin supported one another.
The imagery conveys the violence that often occurred in East Berlin.
The imagery conveys the violence that often occurred in East Berlin.
The imagery reveals how people in East Berlin hated those from West Berlin.
by Heather B. Moore
One of the men stepped in front of her, so she stepped around him, but he moved again.
“Let me pass,” she said in a low voice.
“Where are you from?” he said.
Luisa glanced up at him. He needed a shave, but otherwise, he looked like most men in East Berlin. Dark clothing, face too thin, eyes haunted.
“Leave her be,” came a sharp reprimand behind them. An elderly woman emerged from the entryway of the apartment building they were next to. She clutched a threadbare shawl about her bony shoulders.
The Slow March of Light © Heather B. Moore, published by Shadow Mountain Publishing
Use the paragraphs to answer the question.
How does the author’s use of imagery in the fourth and fifth paragraphs convey information about the historical setting?
(1 point)
Responses
The imagery implies that people in East Berlin did not get enough to eat.
The imagery implies that people in East Berlin did not get enough to eat.
The imagery shows how people in East Berlin supported one another.
The imagery shows how people in East Berlin supported one another.
The imagery conveys the violence that often occurred in East Berlin.
The imagery conveys the violence that often occurred in East Berlin.
The imagery reveals how people in East Berlin hated those from West Berlin.
The author’s use of imagery in the fourth and fifth paragraphs conveys information about the historical setting by implying that people in East Berlin did not get enough to eat. The description of the man with a "face too thin" and the elderly woman clutching a "threadbare shawl about her bony shoulders" suggests physical deprivation and hardship, reflecting the difficult conditions and scarcity faced by individuals living in East Berlin during that time.
1 answer