Read the excerpt from Judith Ortiz Cofer’s poem “El Olvido.” a bare, cold room with no pictures on the walls, a forgetting place where she fears you will die of loneliness and exposure. Jesús, María, y José, she says, el olvido is a dangerous thing.Which strategy would be most helpful in enhancing the reader’s comprehension of the poem?
Read the excerpt from "How the Internet and Other Technologies Came About."Because most cities would no longer exist, messages would have to be broken up into pieces, scattered throughout the system, moved around cities that no longer existed, and then reassembled at the destination. ARPA combined these ideas with an existing system to create what is now called e-mail.Which reading strategy would most help in comprehending the excerpt?
Read the excerpt from “Like Mexicans.”We talk for an hour and had apple pie and coffee, slowly. Finally, we got up with Carolyn taking my hand. Slightly embarrassed, I tried to pull away but her grip held me. I let her have her way as she led me down the hallway with her mother right behind me. . . . Carolyn waved again. I looked, back, waving. . . . Her people were like Mexicans, only different.Which best explains how Soto’s text structure helps establish his voice in the excerpt?
Read the excerpt from “First Generation” of Dreaming in Cuban.She considers the vagaries of sports, the happenstance of El Líder, a star pitcher in his youth, narrowly missing a baseball career in America. His wicked curveball attracted the major league scouts, and the Washington Senators were interested in signing him but changed their minds. Frustrated, El Líder went home, rested his pitching arm, and started a revolution in the mountains.Read the excerpt from “Like Mexicans.”We talked for an hour and had apple pie and coffee, slowly. Finally, we got up with Carolyn taking my hand. Slightly embarrassed, I tried to pull away but her grip held me. I let her have her way as she led me down the hallway with her mother right behind me. . . . Carolyn waved again. I looked, back, waving. . . . Her people were like Mexicans, only different.Which best states how the structures of the excerpts are similar?
Read the historical fact to make a text to world connection. The Cold War (1947-1991) was fought to contain the spread of communism and deter nuclear attack; subsequently it created a stockpiling of arms and munitions.Then, read the excerpt from Michio Kaku’s book Visions: How Science Will Revolutionize the 21st Century.There was also a sense of urgency. The Pentagon was worried that the shattered remains of the Soviet Union might be rebuilt before the United States. Following a nuclear war, there would be a race to see who could rebuild their country first. In a scenario of two dazed boxers lying flat on their backs, slowly regaining consciousness, the winner of World War III would be that country which could stand on its feet first (and so go on to win World War IV). Therefore, the Pentagon’s priority was to provide scientists with a way to rebuild the country as fast as possible, unimpeded by unnecessary restrictions.Which detail from the excerpt of Michio Kaku’s book provides the most cultural context about the Cold War?
Read the excerpt from "How the Internet and Other Technologies Came About."Tanks and submarines were easily simulated, since looking through goggles wasn’t very much different from looking through a pair of binoculars or a periscope. Since the first head-mounted display was built for the Pentagon in 1968, primitive versions of virtual reality have since proliferated to video arcades around the country.Which information from the excerpt best supports the inference that certain video games resulted from issues related to national security?
Read the excerpt from Julia Ortiz Cofer’s poem "El Olvido."It is dangerousto spurn the clothes you were born to wearfor the sake of fashion; dangerousto use weapons and sharp instrumentsyou are not familiar with; dangerousto disdain the plaster saintsbefore which your mother kneelspraying with embarrassing fervorthat you survive in the place you have chosen to live:The items listed in this excerpt symbolize
Read the passage from "The Book of Martha.”She stood up and looked down at him. "Is it what I should do? Will it work? Please tell me.""I truly don't know. I don't want to know. I want to watch it all unfold. I've used dreams before, you know, but not like this."His pleasure was so obvious that she almost took the whole idea back. He seemed able to be amused by terrible things. "Let me think about this," she said. "Can I be by myself for a while?"God nodded. "Speak aloud to me when you want to talk. I'll come to you."
Read the excerpt from "Like Mexicans."We had lunch: sandwiches, potato chips, and iced tea. Carolyn and her mother talked mostly about neighbors and the congregation at the Japanese Methodist Church in West Fresno. Her father, who was in khaki work clothes, excused himself with a wave that was almost a salute and went outside. I heard a truck start, a dog bark, and the truck rattle away.How does Soto build a central idea of his story in the excerpt?
Read the passage from "The Most Dangerous Game.”"Rainsford!" screamed the general. "How in God's name did you get here?""Swam," said Rainsford. "I found it quicker than walking through the jungle."The general sucked in his breath and smiled. "I congratulate you," he said. "You have won the game."Rainsford did not smile. "I am still a beast at bay," he said, in a low, hoarse voice. "Get ready, General Zaroff."The general made one of his deepest bows. "I see," he said. "Splendid! One of us is to furnish a repast for the hounds. The other will sleep in this very excellent bed. On guard, Rainsford." . . .He had never slept in a better bed, Rainsford decided.
Read the excerpt from “How the Internet and Other Technologies Came About.”In a scenario of two dazed boxers lying flat on their backs, slowly regaining consciousness, the winner of World War III would be that country which could stand on its feet first (and so go on to win World War VI). Therefore, the pentagon’s priority was to provide scientists with a way to rebuild the country as fast as possible, unimpeded by unnecessary restrictions.Which type of rhetoric is used most in this excerpt to convince readers of the author’s point of view?
Read the passage from "The Book of Martha.”"As much as possible." Martha frowned, imagining what it might be like to live in such a world. Would people still read books? Perhaps they would to feed their dreams. Would she still be able to write books? Would she want to? What would happen to her if the only work she had ever cared for was lost? "People should still care about their families and their work," she said. "The dreams shouldn't take away their self-respect. They shouldn't be content to dream on a park bench or in an alley. I just want the dreams to slow things down a little. A little less aggression, as you said, less covetousness. Nothing slows people down like satisfaction, and this satisfaction will come every night."
Read the excerpt from Gary Soto’s story "Like Mexicans."My grandmother gave me bad advice and good advice when I was in my early teens. For the bad advice, she said that I should become a barber because they made good money and listened to the radio all day. “Honey, they don’t work como burros,” she would say every time I visited her. She made the sound of donkeys braying. “Like that, honey!” For the good advice, she said that I should marry a Mexican girl. “No Okies, hijo”—she would say— “Look, my son. He marry one and they fight every day about I don’t know what and I don’t know what.” For her, everyone who wasn’t Mexican, black, or Asian were Okies. The French were Okies, the Italians in suits were Okies. . . . she lectured me on the virtues of the Mexican girl.What inference can be made about the grandmother’s point of view in this excerpt?
What best summarizes the central idea of the passage from "How the Internet and Other Technologies Came About"?
What best summarizes the central idea of the passage from "Like Mexicans"?
Read the excerpt from Gary Soto’s short story "Like Mexicans.”My grandmother gave me bad advice and good advice when I was in my early teens. For the bad advice, she said that I should become a barber because they made good money and listened to the radio all day. “Honey, they don’t work como burros,” she would say every time I visited her. She made the sound of donkeys braying. “Like that, honey!” For the good advice, she said that I should marry a Mexican girl. “No Okies, hijo”—she would say— “Look, my son. He marry one and they fight every day about I don’t know what and I don’t know what.” For her, everyone who wasn’t Mexican, black, or Asian were Okies. The French were Okies, the Italians in suits were Okies. . . . she lectured me on the virtues of the Mexican girl.The complex narrative structure used in the excerpt is an example of
Read the passage from "The Book of Martha.”After a moment, Martha was able to take her hands from her face and look again at the grayness around her and at God. "This can't be heaven," she said. "There's nothing here, no one here but you.""Is that all you see?" God asked.This confused her even more. "Don't you know what I see?" she demanded and then quickly softened her voice. "Don't you know everything?"God smiled. "No, I outgrew that trick long ago. You can't imagine how boring it was."
Which choice best describes a protagonist in a short story?
Which excerpt from "The Man to Send Rain Clouds" best illustrates how Leon’s beliefs differ from those of Father Paul?
Read the excerpt from “Take the Tortillas Out of Your Poetry.”My friend had concluded that if he took his language and culture out of his poetry, he stood a better chance of receiving a fellowship. He took out his native language, the poetic patois of our reality, the rich mixture of Spanish, English, pachuco and street talk which we know so well. In other words, he took the tortillas out of his poetry, which is to say he took the soul out of his poetry. Which best explains how Anaya’s word choice establishes his voice in the excerpt?
Read the excerpt from "Mother Tongue."Just last week, I was walking down the street with my mother, and I again found myself conscious of the English I was using, the English I do use with her. We were talking about the price of new and used furniture and I heard myself saying this: “Not waste money that way.” My husband was with us as well, and he didn’t notice any switch in my English. And then I realized why. It’s because over the twenty years we’ve been together I’ve often used that same kind of English with him, and sometimes he even uses it with me. It has become our language of intimacy, a different sort of English that relates to family talk, the language I grew up with. How does Tan build a central idea of her story in the excerpt?
Read the excerpt from Cristina Garcia’s Dreaming in Cuban.I don’t really want to talk about my father but I end up telling Minnie how he used to take me horseback riding on our ranch, strapping me in his saddle with a leather seat belt he designed just for me. Dad’s family owned casinos in Cuba, and had one of the largest ranches on the island. There were beef cattle and dairy cows, horses, pigs, goats, and lambs. Dad fed them molasses to fatten them, and gave the chickens corn and sorghum until they laid vermilion eggs, rich with vitamins. He took me on an overnight inspection once. We camped out under a sapodilla tree and listened to the pygmy owls with their old women’s voices. My father knew I understood more than I could say. He told me stories about Cuba after Columbus came. He said that the Spaniards wiped out more Indians with smallpox than with muskets.How does the structure of the excerpt add meaning to the passage?
Read the excerpt from Leslie Marmon Silko’s story "The Man to Send Rain Clouds."His fingers were stiff, and it took him a long time to twist the lid off the holy water. Drops of water fell on the red blanket and soaked into dark icy spots. He sprinkled the grave and the water disappeared almost before it touched the dim, cold sand; it reminded him of something—he tried to remember what it was, because he thought if he could remember he might understand this. He sprinkled more water; he shook the container until it was empty, and the water fell through the light from sundown like August rain that fell while the sun was still shining, almost evaporating before it touched the wilted squash flowers.Which statement best describes the significance of the holy water in this excerpt?
Read the excerpt from "Mother Tongue." And sure enough, the following week there we were in front of this astonished stockbroker, and I was sitting there red-faced and quiet, and my mother, the real Mrs. Tan, was shouting at his boss in her impeccable broken English.The inference suggested by this excerpt is that nonstandard forms of English
Read the passage from "The Book of Martha.”She stood up and looked down at him. "Is it what I should do? Will it work? Please tell me.""I truly don't know. I don't want to know. I want to watch it all unfold. I've used dreams before, you know, but not like this."His pleasure was so obvious that she almost took the whole idea back. He seemed able to be amused by terrible things. "Let me think about this," she said. "Can I be by myself for a while?"God nodded. "Speak aloud to me when you want to talk. I'll come to you.”
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