Choosing Language for Context and Purpose — Unit test
Question 21 • ELA 11B-CR
Which statement from “John Redding Goes to Sea” best supports the idea that the author, Zora Neale Hurston, was an independent woman who longed to escape her small hometown?
Answer
A
"Pa, when ah gets as big as you Ah'm goin' farther than them ships. Ah'm goin' to where the sky touches the ground."
B
"Well, son, when Ah wuz a boy Ah said Ah wuz goin' too, but heah Ah am. Ah hopes you have bettah luck than me."
C
"Well, well, doan cry. Ah thought youse uh grown up man. Men doan cry lak babies. You mustn't take it too hard 'bout yo' ships. You gotta git uster things gittin' tied up . . .”
D
Alfred Redding's brown face grew wistful for a moment, and the child noticing it, asked quickly: "Do weeds tangle up folks too, pa?"
Explanation
Choice A best supports the idea of longing to escape a small hometown because John dreams of traveling farther than the ships, to a place “where the sky touches the ground.” That ambitious desire to go beyond what he knows reflects the author’s wish for independence and a wider life. The other choices describe his father’s disappointment or reactions to John, rather than John’s own longing to leave.
AI-written and checked against the verified answer.