Question

Part A: Based on the context clues in this passage, what is the best meaning of the figure of speech “the strands of my mixed heritage”

Passage: I don’t know if the Legionnaires still march back into the woods each year. I like to believe they do. For that kind of experience has helped me keep balance when the strands of my mixed heritage seem to pull one against another. However unconscious, it was a moment of crossover, a moment when the borders of culture were nullified by the greater instincts of humanity to remember and to give honor. Perhaps the Memorial Days of those early years have become one of the watermarks of my life because they brought to ceremonial focus the many tellings of the past that filled up the hours and days of my childhood. As children, we were never so much taught as storied. All work and play had memories attached.

A. an extended metaphor, related to hair, for the idea that the parts of her racial and ethnic backgrounds are not completely blended

B. a simile to show that parts of her are in constant struggle with one another

C. a euphemism for “mixed race” to demonstrate a feeling of struggle within herself

D. another way of saying that her identity is smooth and untangled, like straight hair

Part B: Which quote BEST supports the meaning of the figure of speech from Part A?

Answer choices for the above question

A. “seem to pull one against another”

B. “that kind of experience has helped me keep balance”

C. “it was a moment of crossover”

D. “the borders of culture were nullified by the greater instincts of humanity to remember and to give honor”

Answer 1

Answer:

C. a euphemism for “mixed race” to demonstrate a feeling of struggle within herself

D. “the borders of culture were nullified by the greater instincts of humanity to remember and to give honor”

Explanation:

A euphemism is a word or expression used instead of another word or expression that may be found offensive or suggest something unpleasant.

Race has always been a sensitive topic, so the narrator uses the figure of speech the strands of my mixed heritage instead of saying that she is multiracial (mixed race). This is how she tells us about the feeling of struggle within herself.

The quote that best supports this meaning is: ... the borders of culture were nullified by the greater instincts of humanity to remember and to give honor. This is the only quote making it clear that she is talking about culture and race.