Read the excerpt from Frederick Douglass’s speech “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”Go where you may, search where you will, roam through all the monarchies and despotisms of the Old World, travel through South America, search out every abuse, and when you have found the last, lay your facts by the side of the everyday practices of this nation, and you will say with me, that, for revolting barbarity and shameless hypocrisy, America reigns without a rival.Which phrase best describes the connotation of the word “reigns”?
Answer
A
a sense of opportunity and growth
B
a sense of fear and anxiety
C
a sense of compassion and humanity
D
a sense of oppression and domination
Explanation
In this passage, Douglass says America is unmatched in its “revolting barbarity and shameless hypocrisy.” The word “reigns” suggests that America rules or dominates in these abuses, not that it shows compassion or offers opportunity. Therefore, “a sense of oppression and domination” best describes its connotation.
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