How do the alliteration, assonance, and rhyme used to portray the child’s speech reflect the speech itself? How do these aspects of the poem provide a clue to the speaker’s attitude toward the child’s stammering?

What does the speaker mean by her description of her daughter as “my blighted child, this wary aristocratic mole” (l. $14$)? What specific details further on add to the speaker’s perception of her daughter?

How do the two mothers’ responses to their daughters differ? What do you think these differences reflect in terms of each mother’s character?

How does the work Abuelita asks the narrator to do — planting, cooking — help the teenager deal with her pent-up anger?

Note the details Ellison provides to describe the yam. How does he appeal to all five senses? What connections to home and heritage does the yam evoke?

In what ways has the speaker “enter[ed]” (l. $7$) the myth in her own life?

Restate the following line into simple language: “Adversity doth still our joys attend” (l. $2$). What might the speaker mean by that statement in general, and how might it apply to her situation in particular?

What is the significance of the biblical and supernatural allusions that appear throughout the play? Consider the story of Troy getting furniture from the devil, and the behavior and history of Gabriel.

How do you interpret the metaphor in lines $3–4$, in which Jonson compares his son’s life to a loan? What does this comparison suggest about the speaker’s faith and his resulting views on life?

Paragraphs $2$ and $3$ focus on the age and circumstances of the boys in the poems. How might these two paragraphs be combined, starting with a clear and unifying topic sentence?

How does Joyce create the atmosphere of the party? Look carefully at the detailed descriptions of the hostesses, guests, servants, house, music, and food.

How do the denotations and connotations of the word marks contribute to the meaning of the poem? Why do you think Pastan called her poem “Marks” rather than “Report Card” or “Grades”?

Based on details in the poem, how would you characterize the mother?

Discuss the differences in connotations in the following groups of words:

Kids, descendants, children, progeny, offspring