American Literature B Final

8)
Excerpt from: Real-World Driver Behavior, Distraction and Crash Factors
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Drivers who engage frequently in distracting activities are more likely to be involved in an inattention-related crash or near-crash. However, drivers are often unable to predict when it is safe to look away from the road to multi-task because the situation can change abruptly leaving the driver no time to react even when looking away from the forward roadway for only a brief time.
Information in this document suggests that multi-tasking during driving is risky because

I am so hungry I could eat a horse!

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

Guides know about enough English to tangle everything up so that a man can make neither head nor tail of it. They know their story by heart—the history of every statue, painting, cathedral, or other wonder they show you. They know it and tell it as a parrot would—and if you interrupt, and throw them off the track, they have to go back and begin over again. All their lives long, they are employed in showing strange things to foreigners and listening to their bursts of admiration. It is human nature to take delight in exciting admiration. It is what prompts children to say “smart” things, and do absurd ones, and in other ways “show off” when company is present. It is what makes gossips turn out in rain and storm to go and be the first to tell a startling bit of news. Think, then what a passion it becomes with a guide, whose privilege it is, every day, to show to strangers wonders that throw them into perfect ecstasies of admiration! He gets so that he could not by any possibility live in a soberer atmosphere. After we discovered this, we never went into ecstasies any more—we never admired anything—we never showed any but impassible faces and stupid indifference in the presence of the sublimest wonders a guide had to display.

from The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain

Which of these is an effective way to challenge the following assertion from the selection?

“Guides know about enough English to tangle everything up so that a man can make neither head nor tail of it.”

What is the likely meaning of radiance in the following sentence, based on your knowledge of the root -radi-?

Carlos was distracted by the radiance of Lina’s smile.

After reading the first Harry Potter novel, I can see why a serpent is on the Slytherin shield.It is the house of the dark wizards.

The flames seemed almost happy as they danced and jumped to the rooftop, licking the shingles before devouring it entirely.

That Aesop fable, 'The Fox and the Grapes' made me realize how bad greed really is.

Choose the word with the correct spelling and context meaning to BEST complete this sentence:

I could not decide ______________I would dress up as a superhero or as a ghoulish monster.

After reading the first Harry Potter novel, I can see why a serpent is on the Slytherin shield.It is the house of the dark wizards.

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

Eldorado was an imaginary place abounding in gold, thought
by sixteenth-century Spaniards to exist in America.

Gaily bedight,
A gallant knight,
In sunshine and in shadow,
Had journey long,
Singing a song,
In search of Eldorado.

But he grew old,
This knight so bold,
And o’er his heart a shadow
Fell as he found
No spot of ground
That looked like Eldorado.

from “Eldorado” by Edgar Allan Poe

Which of these does shadow most likely symbolize in the first stanza of the poem?

Based on your knowledge of the prefix mal-, what is the meaning of malfunction?

The angry waves crashed against the rocks.

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry’s cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.
The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I’ll put a trinket on.

LXXIX by Emily Dickinson

Which of these best describes the poet’s style in this poem?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question.

There are many Greek myths about the transformation of a person into a plant or flower. Most often, such changes were punishments by the gods. Once the change took place, the transformed human lived on forever in his or her new situation. The fate of Narcissus is a fine example.
Narcissus was a handsome young man who preferred the open air and the woods to the confinement of indoor life. He was extremely vain about his beauty, prizing it above all else. The talkative nymph Echo fell deeply in love with him and followed him everywhere, even though Narcissus never returned her affections. Finally, weary of her unrequited love, Echo died of grief and faded into the mountains. All that remained of her was her voice, which people still hear today, echoing through the valleys.
The gods decided to punish Narcissus for his vanity and his lack of feelings for poor Echo. One day, when Narcissus stopped by a little pond for a drink of water, he saw his reflection in the still waters.
Struck by his own beauty, he sat and stared at himself for a long time. Then, when he tried to embrace his image, he fell into the water and drowned. Nymphs transformed his body into a white narcissus flower that blooms every spring by the side of the pond.

Which of the following best describes Narcissus’s major flaw?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

Guides know about enough English to tangle everything up so that a man can make neither head nor tail of it. They know their story by heart—the history of every statue, painting, cathedral, or other wonder they show you. They know it and tell it as a parrot would—and if you interrupt, and throw them off the track, they have to go back and begin over again. All their lives long, they are employed in showing strange things to foreigners and listening to their bursts of admiration. It is human nature to take delight in exciting admiration. It is what prompts children to say “smart” things, and do absurd ones, and in other ways “show off” when company is present. It is what makes gossips turn out in rain and storm to go and be the first to tell a startling bit of news. Think, then what a passion it becomes with a guide, whose privilege it is, every day, to show to strangers wonders that throw them into perfect ecstasies of admiration! He gets so that he could not by any possibility live in a soberer atmosphere. After we discovered this, we never went into ecstasies any more—we never admired anything—we never showed any but impassible faces and stupid indifference in the presence of the sublimest wonders a guide had to display.

from The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain

What detail does the author use to support his philosophy that humans “take delight in exciting admiration”?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry’s cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.
The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I’ll put a trinket on.

LXXIX by Emily Dickinson

Which of these best describes the poet’s attitude toward her subject in the poem?

This algebra class is killing me!

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

Guides know about enough English to tangle everything up so that a man can make neither head nor tail of it. They know their story by heart—the history of every statue, painting, cathedral, or other wonder they show you. They know it and tell it as a parrot would—and if you interrupt, and throw them off the track, they have to go back and begin over again. All their lives long, they are employed in showing strange things to foreigners and listening to their bursts of admiration. It is human nature to take delight in exciting admiration. It is what prompts children to say “smart” things, and do absurd ones, and in other ways “show off” when company is present. It is what makes gossips turn out in rain and storm to go and be the first to tell a startling bit of news. Think, then what a passion it becomes with a guide, whose privilege it is, every day, to show to strangers wonders that throw them into perfect ecstasies of admiration! He gets so that he could not by any possibility live in a soberer atmosphere. After we discovered this, we never went into ecstasies any more—we never admired anything—we never showed any but impassible faces and stupid indifference in the presence of the sublimest wonders a guide had to display.

from The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain

What is one aspect of the author’s style in this selection?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question.

There are many Greek myths about the transformation of a person into a plant or flower. Most often, such changes were punishments by the gods. Once the change took place, the transformed human lived on forever in his or her new situation. The fate of Narcissus is a fine example.
Narcissus was a handsome young man who preferred the open air and the woods to the confinement of indoor life. He was extremely vain about his beauty, prizing it above all else. The talkative nymph Echo fell deeply in love with him and followed him everywhere, even though Narcissus never returned her affections. Finally, weary of her unrequited love, Echo died of grief and faded into the mountains. All that remained of her was her voice, which people still hear today, echoing through the valleys.
The gods decided to punish Narcissus for his vanity and his lack of feelings for poor Echo. One day, when Narcissus stopped by a little pond for a drink of water, he saw his reflection in the still waters.
Struck by his own beauty, he sat and stared at himself for a long time. Then, when he tried to embrace his image, he fell into the water and drowned. Nymphs transformed his body into a white narcissus flower that blooms every spring by the side of the pond.

Why did such transformations take place?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry’s cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.
The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I’ll put a trinket on.

LXXIX by Emily Dickinson

Which of these is an example of slant rhyme from the poem?

Which of these best defines infinite in the following sentence, based on your knowledge of the meaning of the root -finis-?

To his first-period teacher, Kevis seemed to have an infinite supply of tardiness excuses.

Excerpt from: No Cons, All Pros for Reality Shows
Dontavious Tindell

I. Getting the Phone Call:
When I finally got the phone call from the producers of the reality TV show "The Coolest Kid in School" telling me I had been accepted as a part of the show's final cast, you’d think that my mom would’ve been happy about it—even proud. I’d shown more initiative in applying for the show than I’d ever shown in trying to improve my grade point average: I’d made an awesome audition tape, filled out a huge 15 page application (including four essays!), and done five different stressful interviews before a panel of producers in order to make the final cut. The phone call informing me that I was on the show was a dream come true for me. But for my mom? No way. She immediately changed her tune from supporting my dream of starring on a reality TV show to doing nothing but questioning it. It’s not so much that she’s opposed to this reality show (focusing on pitting teenagers against one another in a televised popularity contest), it’s all reality shows that she thinks are, in her words, “hate-filled, degrading, and wicked.” She could not be more wrong, though.

Which correctly identifies a detail related to the narrator's showing initiative in applying for the show? Refer to section I.

What happened to Narcissus?

1.The sun deity sprinted across the heavens every day. 2.He moved so rapidly that no one had time to complete their hard work during the hours of daylight. 3.They couldn’t cultivate enough pineapple taro because there was never enough sunlight to heat the soil and the developing plants. 4.Everyone was feeling voracious and ill tempered. 5.Something had to be done to slow him down.

Which sentence contains a phrase that requires a hyphen?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question.

There are many Greek myths about the transformation of a person into a plant or flower. Most often, such changes were punishments by the gods. Once the change took place, the transformed human lived on forever in his or her new situation. The fate of Narcissus is a fine example.
Narcissus was a handsome young man who preferred the open air and the woods to the confinement of indoor life. He was extremely vain about his beauty, prizing it above all else. The talkative nymph Echo fell deeply in love with him and followed him everywhere, even though Narcissus never returned her affections. Finally, weary of her unrequited love, Echo died of grief and faded into the mountains. All that remained of her was her voice, which people still hear today, echoing through the valleys.
The gods decided to punish Narcissus for his vanity and his lack of feelings for poor Echo. One day, when Narcissus stopped by a little pond for a drink of water, he saw his reflection in the still waters.
Struck by his own beauty, he sat and stared at himself for a long time. Then, when he tried to embrace his image, he fell into the water and drowned. Nymphs transformed his body into a white narcissus flower that blooms every spring by the side of the pond.

How did the nymph Echo get her name?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

Eldorado was an imaginary place abounding in gold, thought
by sixteenth-century Spaniards to exist in America.

Gaily bedight,
A gallant knight,
In sunshine and in shadow,
Had journey long,
Singing a song,
In search of Eldorado.

But he grew old,
This knight so bold,
And o’er his heart a shadow
Fell as he found
No spot of ground
That looked like Eldorado.

from “Eldorado” by Edgar Allan Poe

Which of these is a feature of free verse in poetry?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

Eldorado was an imaginary place abounding in gold, thought
by sixteenth-century Spaniards to exist in America.

Gaily bedight,
A gallant knight,
In sunshine and in shadow,
Had journey long,
Singing a song,
In search of Eldorado.

But he grew old,
This knight so bold,
And o’er his heart a shadow
Fell as he found
No spot of ground
That looked like Eldorado.

from “Eldorado” by Edgar Allan Poe

The journey in this poem is a symbol for life. Which of these best describes this type of symbol in literature?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

Eldorado was an imaginary place abounding in gold, thought
by sixteenth-century Spaniards to exist in America.

Gaily bedight,
A gallant knight,
In sunshine and in shadow,
Had journey long,
Singing a song,
In search of Eldorado.

But he grew old,
This knight so bold,
And o’er his heart a shadow
Fell as he found
No spot of ground
That looked like Eldorado.

from “Eldorado” by Edgar Allan Poe

What does Eldorado most likely symbolize in the poem?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry’s cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.
The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I’ll put a trinket on.

LXXIX by Emily Dickinson

What do the nuts, berry, rose, maple, and field symbolize in the poem?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry’s cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.
The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I’ll put a trinket on.

LXXIX by Emily Dickinson

Which of these best describes the concept conveyed by the images in the poem?

Which word is correctly spelled and will BEST complete this sentence?

Courtney enjoys many types of dance, ________________ jazz and ballet.

“The Brain—is wider than the Sky—” compares the physical size of the brain to that of the sky and the sea. What point is Dickinson making when she uses these images?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question.

There are many Greek myths about the transformation of a person into a plant or flower. Most often, such changes were punishments by the gods. Once the change took place, the transformed human lived on forever in his or her new situation. The fate of Narcissus is a fine example.
Narcissus was a handsome young man who preferred the open air and the woods to the confinement of indoor life. He was extremely vain about his beauty, prizing it above all else. The talkative nymph Echo fell deeply in love with him and followed him everywhere, even though Narcissus never returned her affections. Finally, weary of her unrequited love, Echo died of grief and faded into the mountains. All that remained of her was her voice, which people still hear today, echoing through the valleys.
The gods decided to punish Narcissus for his vanity and his lack of feelings for poor Echo. One day, when Narcissus stopped by a little pond for a drink of water, he saw his reflection in the still waters.
Struck by his own beauty, he sat and stared at himself for a long time. Then, when he tried to embrace his image, he fell into the water and drowned. Nymphs transformed his body into a white narcissus flower that blooms every spring by the side of the pond.

According to the selection, what type of transformation often appeared in Greek myths?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question.

There are many Greek myths about the transformation of a person into a plant or flower. Most often, such changes were punishments by the gods. Once the change took place, the transformed human lived on forever in his or her new situation. The fate of Narcissus is a fine example.
Narcissus was a handsome young man who preferred the open air and the woods to the confinement of indoor life. He was extremely vain about his beauty, prizing it above all else. The talkative nymph Echo fell deeply in love with him and followed him everywhere, even though Narcissus never returned her affections. Finally, weary of her unrequited love, Echo died of grief and faded into the mountains. All that remained of her was her voice, which people still hear today, echoing through the valleys.
The gods decided to punish Narcissus for his vanity and his lack of feelings for poor Echo. One day, when Narcissus stopped by a little pond for a drink of water, he saw his reflection in the still waters.
Struck by his own beauty, he sat and stared at himself for a long time. Then, when he tried to embrace his image, he fell into the water and drowned. Nymphs transformed his body into a white narcissus flower that blooms every spring by the side of the pond.

Based on the selection, what is the best definition of unrequited love?

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

Eldorado was an imaginary place abounding in gold, thought
by sixteenth-century Spaniards to exist in America.

Gaily bedight,
A gallant knight,
In sunshine and in shadow,
Had journey long,
Singing a song,
In search of Eldorado.

But he grew old,
This knight so bold,
And o’er his heart a shadow
Fell as he found
No spot of ground
That looked like Eldorado.

from “Eldorado” by Edgar Allan Poe

Which line of poetry is characteristic of transcendentalism?

Sarah Rosenberg knew this funeral would be hard to attend. She hesitated, and without really thinking, she reached down and gingerly grasped the little gold star on her necklace. She braced herself and walked into the synagogue.

Choose the word that is spelled correctly and fits BEST in the context of the sentence.

The children in the play ______________ to become actors some day.

Read the selection. Then, answer the question that follows.

Eldorado was an imaginary place abounding in gold, thought
by sixteenth-century Spaniards to exist in America.

Gaily bedight,
A gallant knight,
In sunshine and in shadow,
Had journey long,
Singing a song,
In search of Eldorado.

But he grew old,
This knight so bold,
And o’er his heart a shadow
Fell as he found
No spot of ground
That looked like Eldorado.

from “Eldorado” by Edgar Allan Poe

What idea do the images in the poem’s second stanza convey?

While daydreaming, Laurie was doodling on her algebra handout; it was covered with little pink hearts and rose flowers.

To which senses do the images in the stanza appeal?

There’s a certain Slant of light, / Winter Afternoons— / That oppresses, like the Heft / Of Cathedral Tunes—