There were more than 600 refugee camps all over the area where atrocities were carried out, and about 70,000 women were raped. The men that committed the violence were sometimes trained and paid by shopkeepers and landlords and had often been given weapons. They took on the police and even armed soldiers on some occasions. Which of the following words from the article provides context clues to the meaning of the word "atrocities"?

Leaders hoped it might actually bring an end to violence and herald a new beginning. The author uses the word "herald" to mean ____.

On June 3, 1947, a group of eight men sat around a table in New Delhi, India. Their task was to decide how to divide up the country following its independence from the British. The northeastern and northwestern parts of the country were made up of Muslim majorities and became the country of Pakistan. The rest of the country was predominantly Hindu — along with religious minorities like the Sikhs — and became the country of India. People greeted this agreement with some cautious hope. Nobody who agreed to the plan realized that weeks later the division would unleash one of the worst tragedies of the 20th century. Why does the author include the last two sentences in the paragraph?

Suleiman the Magnificent became the sultan of the Ottoman Empire in 1520, commencing the empire's "Golden Age." On September 7, 1566, Suleiman died of a heart attack. The next day, the Ottomans won the Battle of Szigetvar on September 8, 1566. His officials did not want word of his death to distract his troops, so they kept it a secret for a month and a half while the Turkish troops established their control of the area. What can be inferred from this selection?

In 1529, Suleiman marched on Hungary once more, taking Buda from the Hapsburgs and then continuing on to besiege the Hapsburg capital at Vienna. On October 11 and 12 of that year, they attempted another siege against 16,000 Viennese defenders, but Vienna managed to hold them off, and the Turkish forces withdrew. The Ottoman sultan did not give up on the idea of taking Vienna, but his second attempt, in 1532, was hampered by rain and mud, and the army never even reached the Hapsburg capital. In 1541, the Hungarians and Ottomans defeated the Austrians, and captured additional Hapsburg land in 1541 and 1544.The Persian Empire under the Safavid dynasty was one of the Ottomans' great rivals. Its ruler, Shah Tahmasp, sought to extend Persian influence by assassinating the Ottoman governor of Baghdad. Suleiman went to war against Tahmsap three times. The third and final confrontation between Suleiman and Tahmasp took place in 1553 to 1554. Shah Tahmasp finally signed a treaty with Suleiman, in which he permanently relinquished his claims to Baghdad and the rest of Mesopotamia. What purpose is served by including information about Suleiman's multiple military campaigns against the Hapsburgs and the Safavids?

Key ideas Murals were originally used to spread messages to people who could not read or write. Often, these messages promoted pride in Mexican culture, history and politics, but as ideas and events changed in Mexico, so did the murals. The ideas of the movement were closely connected to how it was shown. Murals could be seen for free by many people, setting them apart from most fine art, which tends to be displayed only in museums. It was a natural way to spread ideas among the working classes. Often, the government would hire artists to paint murals. However, many artists would come to reject the direction being handed down to them, instead creating work that incorporated some of their own ideas and values. Sometimes this proved highly controversial and sometimes they were allowed to get away with it. The Mexican muralist movement continues to influence artists today, especially in the graffiti and street art scenes. Which of the following sentences from the section "Key ideas" BEST develops a central idea of the article?

In 1920, the new government decided to order a large number of public works of art. The artwork would help spread the ideas that were central to the revolution and establish a new identity for Mexico, bringing together its past, present and future. Murals drew on Mexico's rich historical and artistic traditions, but they also showed the country moving forward into the modern age. Importantly, most Mexicans at the time could not read or write, so the new government could not communicate through pamphlets and newspapers. Instead, it decided to use large-scale murals. In order to create these murals, the government hired some of the best Mexican artists of the day. Which central idea is MOST supported by the selection above?

Wandering around the Albuquerque Airport Terminal, after learning my flight had been delayed four hours, I heard an announcement: “If anyone in the vicinity of Gate A-4 understands any Arabic, please come to the gate immediately.” Well — one pauses these days. Gate A-4 was my own gate. I went there. An older woman in full traditional Palestinian embroidered dress, just like my grandma wore, was crumpled to the floor, wailing. “Help,” said the flight agent. “Talk to her. What is her problem? We told her the flight was going to be late and she did this.” I stooped to put my arm around the woman and spoke haltingly. “Shu-dow-a, Shu-bid-uck Habibti? Stani schway, Min fadlick, Shu-bit- se-wee?” The minute she heard any words she knew, however poorly used, she stopped crying. She thought the flight had been cancelled entirely. She needed to be in El Paso for major medical treatment the next day. I said, “No, we’re fine, you’ll get there, just later, who is picking you up? Let’s call him.” Why does the flight agent ask the speaker to talk to the older woman?

We called her son, I spoke with him in English. I told him I would stay with his mother till we got on the plane and ride next to her. She talked to him. Then we called her other sons just for the fun of it. Then we called my dad and he and she spoke for a while in Arabic and found out of course they had ten shared friends. Then I thought just for the heck of it why not call some Palestinian poets I know and let them chat with her? This all took up two hours. She was laughing a lot by then. Telling of her life, patting my knee, answering questions. She had pulled a sack of homemade mamool cookies — little powdered sugar crumbly mounds stuffed with dates and nuts — from her bag — and was offering them to all the women at the gate. To my amazement, not a single woman declined one. It was like a sacrament.The traveler from Argentina, the mom from California, the lovely woman from Laredo — we were all covered with the same powdered sugar. And smiling. There is no better cookie. How do the other women at the gate respond to the older woman’s offering of cookies?

And then the airline broke out free apple juice from huge coolers and two little girls from our flight ran around serving it and they were covered with powdered sugar, too. And I noticed my new best friend — by now we were holding hands — had a potted plant poking out of her bag, some medicinal thing, with green furry leaves. Such an old country tradi- tion. Always carry a plant. Always stay rooted to somewhere. And I looked around that gate of late and weary ones and I thought, This is the world I want to live in. The shared world. Not a single person in that gate — once the crying of confusion stopped — seemed apprehensive about any other person. They took the cookies. I wanted to hug all those other women, too. This can still happen anywhere. Not everything is lost. The speaker wants to live in a world in which people…

Wandering around the Albuquerque Airport Terminal, after learning my flight had been delayed four hours, I heard an announcement: “If anyone in the vicinity of Gate A-4 understands any Arabic, please come to the gate immediately.” Well — one pauses these days. Gate A-4 was my own gate. I went there. An older woman in full traditional Palestinian embroidered dress, just like my grandma wore, was crumpled to the floor, wailing. “Help,” said the flight agent. “Talk to her. What is her problem? We told her the flight was going to be late and she did this.” I stooped to put my arm around the woman and spoke haltingly. “Shu-dow-a, Shu-bid-uck Habibti? Stani schway, Min fadlick, Shu-bit- se-wee?” The minute she heard any words she knew, however poorly used, she stopped crying. She thought the flight had been cancelled entirely. She needed to be in El Paso for major medical treatment the next day. I said, “No, we’re fine, you’ll get there, just later, who is picking you up? Let’s call him.” We called her son, I spoke with him in English. I told him I would stay with his mother till we got on the plane and ride next to her. She talked to him. Then we called her other sons just for the fun of it. Then we called my dad and he and she spoke for a while in Arabic and found out of course they had ten shared friends. Then I thought just for the heck of it why not call some Palestinian poets I know and let them chat with her? This all took up two hours. She was laughing a lot by then. Telling of her life, patting my knee, answering questions. She had pulled a sack of homemade mamool cookies — little powdered sugar crumbly mounds stuffed with dates and nuts — from her bag — and was offering them to all the women at the gate. To my amazement, not a single woman declined one. It was like a sacrament.1 The traveler from Argentina, the mom from California, the lovely woman from Laredo — we were all covered with the same powdered sugar. And smiling. There is no better cookie. And then the airline broke out free apple juice from huge coolers and two little girls from our flight ran around serving it and they were covered with powdered sugar, too. And I noticed my new best friend — by now we were holding hands — had a potted plant poking out of her bag, some medicinal thing, with green furry leaves. Such an old country tradi- tion. Always carry a plant. Always stay rooted to somewhere. And I looked around that gate of late and weary ones and I thought, This is the world I want to live in. The shared world. Not a single person in that gate — once the crying of confusion stopped — seemed apprehensive2 about any other person. They took the cookies. I wanted to hug all those other women, too. This can still happen anywhere. Not everything is lost. Which statement expresses the theme of the poem?

THE KEYS OF DESTINY: For a thousand nights, Scheherazade beguiled= King Shahryar with her stories, winning each night a stay of execution until the next. Some of the stories made him laugh; some of them made him cry. Some were romantic; some were coarse. Some were full of foolishness; some were full of wisdom. She told him the story of the birds and the beasts and the son of Adam and the story of the angel of death and the rich king. And on the thousand and first night, she told him about... the keys of destiny. It is said that Muhammad Ibn Thailun, sultan of Egypt, was as wise and good a ruler as his father had been cruel and unjust. Therefore Allah blessed his reign, and the land and the people prospered. One day, at the beginning of his reign, Muhammad called all the officers of his court before him to question them about their duties and see whether they were paid enough, or too much, for what they did. The first to come before him were the wazirs, forty old men with long white beards and wise eyes, led by the grand wazir. Then the governors of the various provinces, and the captains of the army and of the police. One by one they knelt before their sultan and kissed the ground, while he rewarded some for their faithful work, and rebuked others for slackness or dishonesty. Why did the sultan call his officials to him?

Then came the headsman, carrying the sword of justice. But instead of walking in proudly, with the naked blade held high, the man crept in with his head hanging down, and the sword languishing8 in its sheath. Prostrating himself before the sultan, he said, “Surely the day of justice has dawned for me! For, my lord, in the days of your father, this sword was never in its sheath. There were scarcely enough hours in the day to execute judgment on all the criminals, traitors, and ne’er-do-wells who were sent before me. My life was a happy and busy one. But now, time hangs heavy on my hands. If this land remains so peaceful and contend, I shall surely die of hunger. But Allah grant our master long life!” Sultan Muhammad answered, “We come from Allah, and return to him! It is true that good for one man mean ill for another. But lift up your heart, headsman, I shall award you a salary equal to the gifts that you used to receive from those poor unfortunates my father used to send you. I hope that your sword may rust away before it is next required.” Why is the headsman upset?

At last there was only one wrinkled old man left. The sultan called him over, and asked, “What do you do?” The old man replied, “O King of time, I have but one duty. I guard a casket that your father entrusted to me. For this I receive ten coins from the treasury every month.” “That is high pay for such easy work!” said the sultan. “What is in the casket?” “I have guarded it for forty years,” said the old man, “and I do not know.” “Then bring it to me,” said the sultan. The old man went away and came back shortly with a chest of carved gold. “Open it,” ordered the sultan. Inside the casket was a little bright red earth and a manuscript, inscribed in gold on the purple-stained skin of a gazelle. The sultan took the manuscript and tried to read it, but, though he knew many of the tongues of man, he could not make it out, nor could any of the wise and learned men of his court. He called on all the famous sages of Egypt, Syria, Persia, and India to read the writing, but none of them could read it. What are sages after all, but foolish old men in large turbans? But at last a wizened servant tottered forward, saying, “Lord, I served your father for many years, and I can tell you the history of this manuscript. Your father stole it from Sheikh Hasan Abdallah al-Ashar, but then found, as you have found, that nobody could read it. So he tried to force the sheikh to read it for him, and when Sheik Hasan Abdallah refused, he threw him into the deepest dungeon in the palace. Allah alone knows whether he groans there still, or is now dead, for all this happened forty years ago.” Sultan Muhammad called the captain of the guard, and told him to make a search of all the dungeons to see if the Sheikh was still alive. It was not long before Sheikh Hasan Abdallah was found, chained to a wall in a dank, dark cell. Hasan Abdallah was imprisoned because…

He was dressed in new robes, given a staff to lean on, and brought before the sultan. When Sultan Muhammad saw the old sheikh, his face lined with the suffering of forty years of unjust captivity, he took the old man’s hand, saying “Forgive me, I beg you, for your cruel punishment. I have only today learned your story. This manuscript, I believe, is yours. And I wish to return it to you.” The old sheikh fell to his knees, crying, “Allah is wise, who makes the poison and the antidote to flower in the same field. Forty years I have lain in the dark; now, the son of my enemy stretches out his hand to me, beckoning me into the sunlight.” The Skeikh Hasan Abdallah said, “For this manuscript, I risked my life. It was the only thing I brought with me from Many-Columned Iram, the fabled city of Shaddad bin Ad, where no man may set his feet. Your father tried to force me to read it, and I would not. But for you, who freely return it, I will tell you what is written here.” Sheikh Hasan Abdallah paused for breath. “This manuscript,” he said, “contains the beginning and end of all wisdom. Its story is the story of my own life." Why does Sultan Muhammad give the manuscript to Hasan Abdallah?

“My father was one of the richest merchants in Cairo, and I was his only son. He gave me the best of educations, and married me to a beautiful young girl, with eyes like pools of starlight. My wife and I lived together in delight for ten happy years. “But no man can escape his destiny. After ten years, my father died. The ships on which his fortune depended were all wrecked in a storm at sea, and the warehouses in which his goods were stored were all destroyed by fire. I was reduced to wretched poverty, and could only live by begging for crusts outside the mosques. “One day when I was on my way to beg, I met a Bedouin mounted on a red camel. When he saw me, he stopped and asked, ‘Can you direct me to the house of the rich merchant named Hasan Abdallah al-Ashar?’ “I have never felt so ashamed. I answered, ‘I know of no such man.’ “But the Bedouin leaped down from his camel, crying, ‘But are you not yourself the man I seek?’ “I had to admit that I was. The man accompanied me home and, seeing our poverty, gave me ten gold pieces to buy food. He remained with me as my guest for sixteen days, and each day he gave me another ten gold pieces." Why does Hasan Abdallah lie about his identity?

“At the end of this time, the Bedouin asked me, ‘Are you willing to serve me?’ “‘I am already your slave,’ I replied. “‘In that case, sell yourself to me,’ he said. ‘I will pay you fifteen hundred gold pieces, which will keep your family fed for many years, if you will sell yourself as my slave.’ “He must have seen that I suspected the worst, for he continued, ‘Do not be afraid. I shall not take your life, or your freedom. All I require is your companionship on a long journey that I must make.’ “So I agreed to his strange request. “On the next morning, I accompanied my master to the beast market and bought myself a camel, and provisions14 for a long journey. “Soon we were in the desert. We rode on without ceasing through the trackless wastes where none but Allah dwells. My master guided us, by some secret knowledge, through the sea of sand, and each day under the burning sky was as long as a night of evil dreams. “On the eleventh morning, we came to a plain, where the golden sands of the desert seemed to have turned silver. In the middle of this plain was a high column, on the top of which was the copper statue of a young man. His right hand was extended, and from each of his fingers dangled a heavy key. The first key was of gold, the second of silver, the third of copper, the fourth of iron, and the fifth lead. “I knew nothing of these keys, but my master knew. They were the Keys of Destiny, and whoever possesses them must bear the fate of each. “The Bedouin said, ‘Now is your chance to buy back your liberty. All you must do is take your bow and shoot down the keys.’ “I shot with all my skill, and with my first arrow brought down the golden key, which is the Key of Misery. ‘You may keep that for yourself,’ said my master, so I tucked it into my belt. “With my second shot, I brought down the silver key, which is Key of Suffering. ‘You may keep that, too,’ said my master. “My next two arrows brought down the keys of iron and of lead, the Key of Glory and the Key of Happiness and Wisdom. These my master pounced on in delight. Why does the Bedouin allow Hasan Abdallah to keep two of the keys?

“I aimed my bow at the last key, but my master cried, ‘Stop, you foolish man!’ for the copper key is the Key of Death. I was so startled at his cry that I shot myself in the foot with my own arrow, and that was the start of my suffering and my misery. “For three days we rode on through the desert, and all the time my foot was causing me agony. Then we came into a fertile oasis with fruit trees, and I picked one of the fruits. No sooner had I bitten into it than my jaws were stuck together. For three days I could neither eat nor drink and, when my teeth finally came unstuck, I found that my master had eaten all my food and drunk all my water. “We stopped that night at the foot of a high mountain. The Bedouin told me, ‘Now is your chance to repay me for my kindness to you and your family. Climb to the top of this mountain, and wait for the sun to rise. At dawn, turn to the east and recite the morning prayer; then you may come down. But do not fall asleep, for the ground up there is poisonous.’ “Despite my pain, hunger, and thirst, I knew that I did owe my master much, so I dragged myself to the top of the hill. But I was so tired when I got there that I could not help falling deep asleep. “At dawn, I woke in the most terrible pain. My entire body was swollen and aching, and I was feverish; I had been poisoned by that noxious place. But I forced myself to rise and make the morning prayer; my shadow loomed out to the west" Why does Hasan Abdallah agree to climb the mountain?

“I started to descend the mountain, but could not keep my feet. I fell, and rolled all the way down, adding bruises and cuts to the rest of my ills. I landed at my master’s feet and all he said was, ‘Ah, there you are! Come and help me dig. At the farthest point where your shadow touched the ground, we shall find a great treasure.’ “We dug, and uncovered a marble tomb, with an inscription that I could not read. Inside the tomb we found human bones and a manuscript, inscribed in gold on the purple-stained skin of a gazelle. You hold it in your hands, O King of time. “My master, who had much hidden knowledge, could read the manuscript. As he did so, his eyes began to sparkle with an inner fire. ‘Now I know the way!’ he cried. ‘Hasan Abdallah, rejoice! We shall be the first of mortal men to set foot in Many-Columned Iram, the city of Shaddad bin Ad. There we shall find the red powder that makes it possible to turn base metals into precious ones. We shall be rich!’ “‘I do not want to be rich,’ I replied. ‘I just want to feel better.’ “‘Nonsense,’ said the Bedouin. But he did stop long enough to harvest some cacti, whose broad, spiky leaves concealed juicy flesh that satisfied both hunger and thirst. “As soon as we had refreshed ourselves, we remounted our camels. We rode for three days and three nights, following the directions in the manuscript, until we came to a glittering river, which threw back the rays of the sun like a mirror. It was a river of mercury, and it was spanned only by a slender crystal bridge with no handrail. It was so narrow and steep that only an idiot would have set foot on it." Why are the two men traveling to Many-Columned Iram?

“My master stepped confidently onto the bridge, and I had to follow, trusting in the mercy of Allah. “We came safely to the other side, and walked on for some hours, until we came to the entrance to a black valley, in the murk of which I could see the dark shapes of serpents, and worse. “I cast myself to the ground in despair. But the Bedouin cried, ‘Be brave! You are not going to die, but will return to Cairo richer than the sultan himself. You must perform just one more task.’ “‘What is that?’ I asked. “‘You must enter the valley and wait until you see a vast serpent with black horns. Using your skill with the bow, you must slay it, and bring me its brain and heart. Leave the rest to me.’ “When I came back with the head and heart of that dread creature, still trembling with terror and exhaustion, the Bedouin took them from me without a word. He had built a fire with dry grass and dead wood, and now he took a diamond from his pocket and, concentrating the rays of the sun through it, kindled flame. “Then he produced an iron pot and a small ruby phial. ‘In this phial,’ he said, ‘is the blood of the phoenix.’ He uncorked the phial and poured its contents into the iron pot, together with the heart and brain of the serpent. Then he put the pot on the fire and, opening the manuscript, began to mutter unintelligible words. “Suddenly he rose to his feet and bared his shoulders. He ordered me to rub his shoulders with the mixture in the pot, and, as I did so, wings began to sprout from his shoulder blades. They grew and grew until, when he flapped them, he began to rise from the ground. Fearing to be left behind, I clutched at his legs, so when he soared into the sky, I was carried up, too. “I do not know how long we flew, but at length we found ourselves above a mighty plain of powdered gold, in the midst of which rose a wonderful city of palaces and gardens. “‘At last!’ cried the Bedouin. ‘Many-Columned Iram, city of dreams, into which no man has ever set foot. Come!’ And with that, he swooped down into the city. As soon as we landed, his wings disappeared. “No words of mine can describe that place. It was built of every precious stone, and at its heart was a garden where the air was scented with musk and the flowers were fed by rivers of wine, of rose essence, and of honey, in a pavilion in that garden was a throne of gold and ruby, and on that throne was the small gold casket that you now hold, O Sultan." Which of the following describes Hasan Abdallah’s opinion of Many-Columned Iram?

“The Bedouin took the casket and opened it. It was full of red powder. He cried out in exultation,18 ‘See! Here is the vital ingredient that I have sought for so many years!’ “I said, ‘Master, throw away the dirty stuff, and fill the box with some of the jewels that lie in heaps all over the city.’ “He answered, ‘Fool, this powder is the very soul of riches. A single grain of it can turn any metal into pure gold. With this box, I can rule the world, and turn kings into slaves!’ “I asked him, ‘And can this powder add a single day to your life, or buy back a single day of your past?’ “He replied, ‘Allah alone is great.’ “We left that city, carrying nothing but the casket of powder and the manuscript. The Bedouin forbade me to take any of the jewels that tempted me at every turn, telling me that to filch a single one would bring instant death." The Bedouin prefers the casket over the jewels because it contains…

“And so we returned to Cairo. Ill health and ill luck dogged every step of my way, while my master whistled along without a care. And when I found my home again, it was to learn that my beloved wife and children, for whom I had sold myself into slavery, were all dead. For I still carried at my belt, though I did not know it, the Keys of Misery and Suffering. “So I went to live with the Bedouin in his palace on the banks of the Nile – no longer his slave, but instead his companion. He taught me much of the hidden science, including the skill to read the magical tongue in which the manuscript is written, though he would not let me read the manuscript itself. He taught me, too, all he knew of the science of alchemy,19 and let me help him use the precious red power to turn base metal into gold. “For all the Bedouin’s kindness, I did not prosper, but remained racked by misfortunes of all kinds, while he seemed to live a charmed life, like one who, on earth, is already in paradise. “But death comes to all, and, one day, I found him lying senseless, with the smile on his face of one born under a happy star. I mourned his loss, and when I buried him I shed tears as for a father. “I was his heir, so it fell to me to sort out his affairs. I opened the gold casket, the source of his wealth, and found that most of its contents has been used up. All that remains is the powder that you see there now." What happens to Hasan Abdallah after the Bedouin dies?

“I was not concerned with that, but I was eager to read the precious manuscript, which I had never been allowed to see. When I had read it, I understood why. For the manuscript, which tells the wise how to enter Many-Columned Iram, also tells of the Keys of Destiny, and so at last I understood that the Bedouin had needed me not for my skill with a bow, but to keep the Keys of Misery and Suffering, leaving him the Glory, the Happiness, and the Wisdom. “At once, I snatched the fateful keys form my belt and melted them down into a crucible. Then I searched everywhere for the other two keys, but I could not find them. “Before I could enjoy any of my new wealth, I was arrested by your father, Sultan Thailun, who had heard that I had the secret of turning base metal into gold. He took the casket of red powder, and the manuscript, and tried to force me to tell him their uses. When I would not, he cast me into prison.” * * * “What an extraordinary tale!” exclaimed Sultan Muhammad. “It seems to me that, even without the Bedouin’s keys, you have found your share of wisdom, and now deserve your share of glory and happiness. Therefore you shall be my grand wazir. Together, we shall use the rest of the red powder to make gold, and with that gold we shall build a mosque in praise of Allah, the all-knowing, the compassionate, who lives and does not die!” How does Sultan Muhammad react to Hasan Abdallah’s story?

Which of the following expresses one of the themes of the story you just read ("The Keys of Destiny")?

Which detail from the text best supports the answer to the theme that stories of morality are powerful and can change how people think and act.?

How do the Bedouin’s actions set the plot of the story "The Keys of Destiny" in motion?

What does Hasan Abdallah mean when he says “‘Allah is wise, who makes the poison and the antidote to flower in the same field’”?

Four Seasons fill the measure of the year; There are four seasons in the mind of man: He has his lusty Spring, when fancy clear Takes in all beauty with an easy span: He has his Summer, when luxuriously Spring’s honied cud of youthful thought he loves To ruminate, and by such dreaming high Is nearest unto heaven: quiet coves His soul has in its Autumn, when his wings He furleth close; contented so to look On mists in idleness — to let fair things Pass by unheeded as a threshold brook. He has his Winter too of pale misfeature, Or else he would forego his mortal nature. What is the meaning of the phrase “fancy clear” as it is used in line 3 of the poem?

Four Seasons fill the measure of the year; There are four seasons in the mind of man: He has his lusty Spring, when fancy clear Takes in all beauty with an easy span: He has his Summer, when luxuriously Spring’s honied cud of youthful thought he loves To ruminate, and by such dreaming high Is nearest unto heaven: quiet coves His soul has in its Autumn, when his wings He furleth close; contented so to look On mists in idleness — to let fair things Pass by unheeded as a threshold brook. He has his Winter too of pale misfeature, Or else he would forego his mortal nature. Based on the structure of “The Human Seasons,” in what way do the human seasons mentioned in the title differ from the seasons of the year?

Although she feeds me bread of bitterness, And sinks into my throat her tiger’s tooth, Stealing my breath of life, I will confess I love this cultured hell that tests my youth. Her vigor flows like tides into my blood, Giving me strength erect against her hate, Her bigness sweeps my being like a flood. Yet, as a rebel fronts a king in state, I stand within her walls with not a shred Of terror, malice, not a word of jeer. Darkly I gaze into the days ahead, And see her might and granite wonders there, Beneath the touch of Time’s unerring hand, Like priceless treasures sinking in the sand. Which of the following best describes the speaker’s feelings about America?

Although she feeds me bread of bitterness, And sinks into my throat her tiger’s tooth, Stealing my breath of life, I will confess I love this cultured hell that tests my youth. Her vigor flows like tides into my blood, Giving me strength erect against her hate, Her bigness sweeps my being like a flood. Yet, as a rebel fronts a king in state, I stand within her walls with not a shred Of terror, malice, not a word of jeer. Darkly I gaze into the days ahead, And see her might and granite wonders there, Beneath the touch of Time’s unerring hand, Like priceless treasures sinking in the sand. Which of the following quotes best supports the love-hate relationship the speaker has with America?

Although she feeds me bread of bitterness, And sinks into my throat her tiger’s tooth, Stealing my breath of life, I will confess I love this cultured hell that tests my youth. Her vigor flows like tides into my blood, Giving me strength erect against her hate, Her bigness sweeps my being like a flood. Yet, as a rebel fronts a king in state, I stand within her walls with not a shred Of terror, malice, not a word of jeer. Darkly I gaze into the days ahead, And see her might and granite wonders there, Beneath the touch of Time’s unerring hand, Like priceless treasures sinking in the sand. In line 11, the word “darkly” is most likely used to convey which of the following?