A Stern Dress Code Could Fix This Problem

The following is a quote from the novel Anthem:

"For they were not white tunics, nor white togas; they were of all colors." 

Which of the following literary terms does this quote represent?

A) personification
B) imagery
C) idiom
D) onomatopoeia








Scroll down for the answer.

________________________________________

The correct answer is B. imagery


Thanks to Mikayla, Marisa, Natalie, and Quinten from Ms. Brooks class for this awesome question.  You know what else is all colors?  Skittles.  Taste the rainbow!

Shameless Plug: Archetypes

 Never fear, fellow Extreme Teachers!  Your daily dose of state-test reading questions is still here - just scroll down to the next post for today's question.

Before you do, however, take a moment to check out this resource on archetypes:

There is no better way to unlock poetry to students who find it too esoteric than with archetypes.  These symbols worm their way into poems, novels, movies, songs, video games - you name it.  They are easy to grasp and open up potential meaning all around.  I have used the presentation in this lesson for regular level all the way to AP level with great success.  

It also comes with a lesson using a Keats poem if you wish to expand on it.

It is, by far, the most valuable lesson I have had in my 31 years of teaching.

Check it out!

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/XET-Archetypes-11213013

The Incredible Journey

 Watch this ad that was pulled from the Superbowl 2015:

What literary term is driving the humor and impact of this ad?

a. paradox
b. metaphor
c. situational irony
d. archetype






Scroll down for the answer.







________________________________________
c. is the correct answer.  Situational irony is when the unexpected happens.  Since we expect this be a heart warming feel good ad the sudden twist at the end leaves it memorable.  The other thing driving this ad is allusion since it is playing off of a similar ad that played the year before for a different company.

I'm So Ready for Summer

Ray Bradbury's short story, "All Summer in a Day" takes place on Venus.  When it was written, nobody knew what the surface of Venus was like, so Bradbury guessed that it was rainy.  Read this excerpt:

"Margot stood apart from them, from these children who could never remember a time when there wasn't rain and rain and rain.  They were all nine years old, and if there had been a day, seven years ago, when the sun came out for an hour and showed its face to the stunned world, they could not recall."

What is the reason for the repetition of the word rain in this passage?

a. to emphasis and draw attention to the fact that it always rains on Venus.
b. for the rhyme and meter of the line.
c. for the alliterarion value.
d. it is part of the verbal irony of the passage.






Scroll down for the answers.





________________________

a. is correct.  By repeating words the author makes you take notice of it.
b. is incorrect.  Look for rhyme and meter in poetry, not prose.
c. is incorrect
d. is incorrect


~

Does Anyone Really Know What Time It Is?

Read the following passage:

I was going to look for my missing watch, but I could never find the time.

This is an example of:

a. allusion

b. alliteration

c. pun

d. irony

Scroll down for the answer.

_______________________

c. is the correct answer.

~

Sadly, there's no wisecracking blue genie in this one!

In the book, 1001 Arabian Nights, there is a sultan that hates women and likes to marry one and then have her killed the next night.  After killing many women this way, he finally marries a woman named Scheherazade who tricks him into letting her live by telling him stories each night, but not finishing them.  That way he must let her live to hear the end of the story.

In the movie version, the sultan was betrayed by his first wife and is planning on killing the next, which is Scheherazade.  He has never actually had a wife killed and because she saves him from his madness, he never does.

What was the director's purpose in changing the story in this manner?


a. to create an indifferent tone
b. to focus on the irony of the situation
c. the director probably never read the original story.
d. it makes the sultan a more sympathetic character






Scroll down for the answer.














______________
a. is incorrect.  An indifferent tone means that the director doesn't care one way or the other.  Since he made the change, we can assume he cares.
b. is incorrect.  There is no irony in this situation.  Many students automatically pick the irony answer since it sounds intelligent.  Don't fall for that trick.
c. is incorrect. 
d. is correct.  If the sultan is killing women, it makes it hard to accept him as a guy who deserves to get the woman at the end of the movie.


~

Made You Look!

 Read the following passage from We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach:

Peter had been to state twice and nationals once. Been given a sweet Jeep for his sixteenth birthday, and ended up good and wasted at about a hundred crazy-fun parties. And now he was eighteen. In the fall, he’d be off to sunny California. And seriously, how sick was college going to be? Pledging some frat and playing ball all over the country and partying with his teammates and frat brothers every weekend. Then he’d go pro if he were lucky, or else get into coaching or something, and he and Stacy would get married and raise some kids and hit up Baja or TJ on Christmas breaks and buy a sweet summer place on Lake Chelan with a Jacuzzi. 


What is the author’s attitude toward Peter?

a. Scornful
b. Disdainful
c. Mocking
d. Aggravated

Scroll down for the answer.











_______________________

Answer: c. The author realizes that Peter's goals are shallow and rather insignificant.

Thanks to Ms. Parsons for this question!  You know, a good tip for the state test is to look up.  After you've finished the questions and before you start the next passage, look up and give your poor eyes a break!