AnswersEnglish 11 ASymbols in Moby-Dick

Symbols in Moby-Dick Answers

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Read the excerpt from Chapter 28 of Moby-Dick.His bone leg steadied in that hole; one arm elevated, and holding by a shroud; Captain Ahab stood erect, looking straight out beyond the ship’s ever pitching prow. There was an infinity of firmest fortitude, a determinate, unsurrenderable willfulness, in the fixed and fearless, forward dedication of that glance.Which best describes the theme Melville develops in this excerpt from the chapter?

A
obsession
B
optimism
C
love
D
loss
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Read the excerpt from the beginning of Chapter 1 of Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson.SQUIRE TRELAWNEY, Dr. Livesey, and the rest of these gentlemen havingasked me to write down the whole particulars about Treasure Island, fromthe beginning to the end, keeping nothing back but the bearings of theisland, and that only because there is still treasure not yet lifted, Itake up my pen in the year of grace and go back to the time whenmy father kept the Admiral Benbow inn and the brown old seaman with thesabre cut first took up his lodging under our roof.Which best explains Stevenson’s reason for beginning the chapter with this paragraph?

A
Stevenson creates confusion in the reader with a narrator who explains that he is writing a story because he has been asked to do so by several other characters.
B
Stevenson creates interest in the reader with mention of still undiscovered treasure and the arrival of a mysterious character in the narrator’s life.
C
Stevenson creates unease in the reader with a detailed account of the problem the main character has to overcome to reach a solution.
D
Stevenson creates a clear visual picture in the reader’s head with a strong description of the story’s setting without giving its actual location.
3

Which excerpt from Chapter 28 of Moby-Dick best develops the theme of the novel concerning humankind’s insistence on manufacturing its own destruction?

A
Nevertheless, ere long, the warm, warbling persuasiveness of the pleasant, holiday weather we came to, seemed gradually to charm him from his mood.
B
And not only that, but moody stricken Ahab stood before them with a crucifixion in his face; in all the nameless regal overbearing dignity of some mighty woe.
C
There seemed no sign of common bodily illness about him, nor of the recovery from any.
D
Whether that mark was born with him, or whether it was the scar left by some desperate wound, no one could certainly say.
4

Read the excerpt from the beginning of Chapter 5 of Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott."What in the world are you going to do now, Jo?" asked Meg one snowyafternoon, as her sister came tramping through the hall, in rubberboots, old sack, and hood, with a broom in one hand and a shovel in theother."Going out for exercise," answered Jo with a mischievous twinkle in hereyes."I should think two long walks this morning would have been enough!It's cold and dull out, and I advise you to stay warm and dry by thefire, as I do," said Meg with a shiver."Never take advice! Can't keep still all day, and not being apussycat, I don't like to doze by the fire. I like adventures, and I'mgoing to find some."Which best explains why Alcott begins the chapter with one character asking another character a question?

A
to develop one character in more detail than another
B
to help the reader visualize the characters’ appearances
C
to stimulate the reader’s desire to understand a character’s motives
D
to establish the setting for the characters’ conversation.
5

Which best describes another comparison that Melville could have used to symbolize the rigid and unalterable character of Ahab in Chapter 28 of Moby-Dick?

A
an uninhabited island
B
a full moon
C
a stone monument
D
a forest fire
6

Which best explains the symbolism behind Melville’s use of the word “brand” to describe the scar on Ahab’s body in Chapter 28 of Moby-Dick?

A
The source of Ahab’s scar has been defeated.
B
The source of Ahab’s scar now owns him.
C
Ahab is at peace with his scar.
D
Ahab is proud of his scar’s significance.
7

Read the excerpt from Chapter 28 of Moby-Dick.It was one of those less lowering, but still grey and gloomy enough mornings of the transition, when with a fair wind the ship was rushing through the water with a vindictive sort of leaping and melancholy rapidity, that as I mounted to the deck at the call of the forenoon watch, so soon as I leveled my glance towards the taffrail, foreboding shivers ran over me. Reality outran apprehension; Captain Ahab stood upon his quarter-deck.Which of the novel’s themes is best developed in this excerpt from Chapter 28 of Moby Dick?

A
a person’s ability to outsmart fate
B
a person’s harmony with nature
C
a person’s control over nature
D
a person’s inability to alter fate
8

Read the excerpt from Chapter 28 of Moby-Dick.It had previously come to me that this ivory leg had at sea been fashioned from the polished bone of the sperm whale’s jaw.How is the fact that Ahab’s leg is made from whale bone significant to the novel’s theme of humans versus nature?

A
It signifies that Ahab has pitted himself against nature in an effort to dominate it.
B
It signifies that Ahab lives a life in harmony with the natural world.
C
It signifies that Ahab has made a choice to surrender to the power of the whales he hunts.
D
It signifies that Ahab see himself as an equal and dependent part of a greater whole.
9

Which best explains the symbolism behind Melville’s comparison of Ahab to a solid bronze cast in Chapter 28 of Moby-Dick?

A
Melville is symbolizing the impermanent nature of Ahab’s character.
B
Melville is symbolizing the intellectual nature of Ahab’s character.
C
Melville is symbolizing the inflexible nature of Ahab’s character.
D
Melville is symbolizing the impolite nature of Ahab’s character.
10

Read the excerpt from Chapter 28 of Moby-Dick.Nor a word he spoke; nor did his officers say aught to him; though by all their minutest gestures and expressions, they plainly showed the uneasy, if not painful, consciousness of being under a troubled master-eye.Which best describes the theme Melville develops in this excerpt?

A
the effectiveness of a leader who sets himself apart from others
B
the importance of obeying a leader under all circumstances
C
the inherent danger of a leader who exhibits signs of distress
D
the problems associated with inexperienced leaders

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