Conflict and Character in Mildred Taylor's The Land
Question 6 • GA-GSE English Language Arts 11
Which lines from the novel reflect the story’s historical context? Check all that apply.“I’ve tried fighting back, but he’s too strong. Thing is, I don’t know how to stop him.”“One thing I liked about my brother George was that he laid things right on the line; he said exactly what was on his mind.”“Now, the Thomases, like all the other families who lived on my daddy's land, were sharecroppers.”“I was afraid Mitchell was going to slap George's hand away and the two of them would get into it right there.”“My brothers had come asking about Mitchell, and my brothers were white.”
Answer
A
“I’ve tried fighting back, but he’s too strong. Thing is, I don’t know how to stop him.”
B
“One thing I liked about my brother George was that he laid things right on the line; he said exactly what was on his mind.”
C
“Now, the Thomases, like all the other families who lived on my daddy's land, were sharecroppers.”
D
“I was afraid Mitchell was going to slap George's hand away and the two of them would get into it right there.”
E
“My brothers had come asking about Mitchell, and my brothers were white.”
Explanation
The lines that reflect the story’s historical context are the ones showing the economic and racial conditions of the time. Choice C mentions sharecroppers, who farmed someone else’s land and paid with part of their crops—a common system in the South after the Civil War. Choice E highlights the racial divide by emphasizing that the narrator’s brothers were white. The other lines describe personal feelings or a possible confrontation without clearly establishing historical context.
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