nit 2 REVIEW– Theme, Characterization, and Author’s Choice

Directions: This review assesses your ability to determine the theme, use of characterization, and the author’s choice in writing the
narrative (see standards).

 ELAGSE10RL2: Determine a theme…closely analyze…how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide
an objective summary of the text.
 ELAGSE10RL3: Analyze how complex characters…develop over the course of a text…
 ELAGSE10RL4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text,
 ELAGSE10RL5: Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure a text…,

Part A – Read the text and answer the questions that follow. Select the best response for each item.
Nelda's Adieu
On a frigid, autumn day, Nelda stood on the banks of the river that crept its way through her hometown. She was immersed in
memories of the countless blissful summer hours she'd spent swimming and picnicking there with her friends. Images of bygone
summers at the river eased through her mind like a movie in slow motion. The images were as clear as yesterday: days so hot that no
one wanted to sit on the bank and rest between swims; tiny, green– brown grass snakes wriggling across Nelda's grandmother's
rainbow-colored picnic quilt; sunburned skin soothed by ice packs; last summer's new sky-blue bathing suit and neon-green water
shoes. Moving away and starting a new life in another state would be difficult, almost as difficult as it had been to beat Tracy in a
swimming race to the nearest tree that muggy July day. That tree, with its feet planted solidly in the lazy, muddy depths of the river,
never failed to trigger the same triumphant elation Nelda had felt when she'd beaten Tracy for the first time. It had been no easy task,
since Tracy was a stellar swimmer and had won best all-around school athlete awards almost every year.
Nelda watched the biting November wind rattle the leaves of that tree that stood resolute far out in the river. The wind pressed
in on Nelda's shoulders, humming in her ears, bringing with it shivers and still more fragments of elusive memories. So audible were
the clamoring voices of her friends in those memories that she almost turned to see if any of them had followed her. Perhaps they had
come to help her say a temporary goodbye to the spot where they'd spent so much of their summer leisure time. No, she was definitely
alone, but like the tree in the river, she would always have friends and people around her who looked to her, who loved her. Nelda
squared her shoulders and scrambled up the bank, determined not to let the cold dampen the anticipation she felt.
The move to another state, because of her parents' employment relocation, would be stressful, but exciting. There would be
new friendships to form; fresh, unknown adventures to experience; and the inevitable obstacles of high school life to overcome. "I'll
make a success of it. I know I can," she said aloud to herself. Her hometown, this old river, and her loyal friends would always be there
to come back to visit. Her parents had promised she could come back and visit Tracy and her family next summer. She felt sure there
would be more summers on those banks, more swimming races with Tracy in the warm, muddy river; more picnics with sandwiches
and lemonade, more leisurely bike rides, and most importantly, more jingling ice cream trucks to chase down River Street. Smiling
again, Nelda lurched through the mud and high grasses of the riverbank and hurried home.
1. The first paragraph of the story is an example of which component of S.T.E.A.L? (RL3)
A. What she says
B. What she thinks
C. Her effect on others
D. Her actions
E. Her looks

2. The author of this text uses a lot of descriptive details to share the events surrounding Nelda’s move to another state. Which
detail from this selection uses descriptive details effectively? (RL5)
A. “She was immersed in memories of the countless blissful summer hours she'd spent swimming and picnicking there with
her friends.”
B. “The move to another state, because of her parents' employment relocation, would be stressful, but exciting.”
C. “’I'll make a success of it. I know I can,’ she said aloud to herself.”
D. “…tiny, green–brown grass snakes wriggling across Nelda's grandmother's rainbow-colored picnic quilt; sunburned skin
soothed by ice packs; last summer's new sky-blue bathing suit and neon-green water shoes.”
 3. Based on one’s reading of the text, what does the word “adieu” mean in the title? (RL4)
A. memories
B. reflections
C. goodbye
D. hello

4. Which P.R.I.D.E. character trait describes Nelda when she says, “I'll make a success of it. I know I can.”? (RL3)
A. purpose
B. resilience
C. integrity
D. discipline
E. empathy

Part B- Read the text and answer the questions that follow. Select the best response for each item.
“Marigolds” (excerpt)
When I awoke, somewhere in the middle of the night, my mother had returned, and I vaguely listened to the conversation that was
audible through the thin walls that separated our rooms. At first, I heard no words, only voices. My mother’s voice was like a cool, dark
room in summer—peaceful, soothing, quiet. I loved to listen to it; it made things seem all right somehow. But my father’s voice cut
through hers, shattering the peace.

“Twenty-two years, Maybelle, twenty-two years,” he was saying, “and I got nothing for you, nothing, nothing.”

“It’s all right, honey, you’ll get something. Everybody out of work now, you know that.”

“It ain’t right. Ain’t no man ought to eat his woman’s food year in and year out and see his children running wild. Ain’t nothing right
about that.”

“Honey, you took good care of us when you had it. Ain’t nobody got nothing nowadays.”

“I ain’t talking about nobody else, I’m talking about me. God knows I try.” My mother said something I could not hear, and my father
cried out louder, “What must a man do, tell me that?”

“Look, we ain’t starving. I git paid every week, and Mrs. Ellis is real nice about giving me things. She gonna let me have Mr. Ellis’s old
coat for you this winter—”

“Damn Mr. Ellis’s coat! And damn his money! You think I want white folks’ leavings? “Damn, Maybelle”—and suddenly he sobbed,
loudly and painfully, and cried helplessly and hopelessly in the dark night. I had never heard a man cry before. I did not know men ever
cried. I covered my ears with my hands but could not cut off the sound of my father’s harsh, painful, despairing sobs. My father was a
strong man who could whisk a child upon his shoulders and go singing through the house. My father whittled toys for us and laughed
so loud that the great oak seemed to laugh with him and taught us how to fish and hunt rabbits. How could it be that my father was
crying? But the sobs went on, unstifled, finally quieting until I could hear my mother’s voice, deep and rich, humming softly as she used
to hum to a frightened child.

The world had lost its boundary lines. My mother, who was small and soft, was now the strength of the family; my father, who was the
rock on which the family had been built, was sobbing like the tiniest child. Everything was suddenly out of tune, like a broken accordion.
Where did I fit into this crazy picture? I do not now remember my thoughts, only a feeling of great bewilderment and fear.

5. Which word best describes the father? (RL3)

A. Outspoken
B. Resilient
C. Arrogant
D. Bitter
 6. What text evidence best reveals the word used to describe the father? (RL3)
A. “Honey, you took good care of us when you had it. Ain’t nobody got nothing nowadays.”
B. “But my father’s voice cut through hers, shattering the peace.”
C. “My father was a strong man who could whisk a child upon his shoulders and go singing through the house.”
D. “I ain’t talking about nobody else, I’m talking about me. God knows I try…What must a man do, tell me that?”

7. How does the author create tension throughout the story? Choose ALL that apply. (RL5)
A. The father crying
B. The parents arguing
C. The narrator (Lizbeth) becoming fearful
D. The description of Lizbeth’s father’s physical strength

8. The author of this text uses a lot of descriptive details to share the events surrounding the conflict happening between
Lizbeth’s parents. Which detail from this selection uses descriptive details effectively? (RL5)
A. “It’s all right, honey, you’ll get something. Everybody out of work now, you know that.”
B. “Ain’t no man ought to eat his woman’s food year in and year out and see his children running wild.”
C. “My mother, who was small and soft, was now the strength of the family; my father, who was the rock on which the family
had been built, was sobbing like the tiniest child.”
D. “I do not now remember my thoughts, only a feeling of great bewilderment and fear.”

9. What is a COMMON THEME shared between “Nelda’s Adieu” and “Marigolds”? (RL2)
A. Weather
B. Life changes
C. Death
D. Competition

10. Choose the evidence (from BOTH stories) that supports the common theme you chose in question #9.
“Nelda’s Adieu”
A. “She was immersed in memories of the countless blissful summer hours she'd spent swimming and picnicking there with
her friends.”
B. “The images were as clear as yesterday…”
C. “Moving away and starting a new life in another state would be difficult…”
D. “It had been no easy task, since Tracy was a stellar swimmer and had won best all-around school athlete awards almost
every year.”
“Marigolds”
A. “When I awoke, somewhere in the middle of the night, my mother had returned, and I vaguely listened to the conversation that
was audible through the walls that separated our rooms.”
B. “Look, we ain’t starving. I git paid every week, and Mrs. Ellis is real nice about giving me things. She gonna let me have Mrs.
Ellis’s old coat for you this winter-“
C. “I did not know men ever cried. I covered my ears with my hands but could not cut off the sound of my father’s harsh, painful,
despairing sobs.”
D. “The world had lost its boundary lines…Everything was suddenly out of tune, like a broken accordion. Where do I fit into this
crazy picture?”