Not MY Bones 1
According to the speaker, what happens when people's hope and faith are attacked?
a) The people give into despair
b) The people are tempted to strike back
c) Those qualities return as strong as ever
d) Those qualities are reborn in others
c) Those qualities return as strong as ever
Read line 10 of “Not My Bones.”
"we are clouds in clothes."
Which statement best expresses the meaning of this line?
a) Our bodies are unique.
b) Our bodies are made of water.
c) We will outlast our bodies.
d) We need to care for our bodies.
c) We will outlast our bodies.
What happened to Fortune's skeleton in 1970?
a) It was used in a college physiology class
b) It was removed from display and stored away.
c) It was studied to determine how fortune died.
b) It was removed from display and stored away.
In the excerpt from Fortune’s Bones, which organizational pattern best describes the structure the author uses in paragraph 17?
a) Main idea and examples
b) Chronological order
c) Cause and effect
d) Problem and solution
a) Main idea and examples
What is the primary message in "Not My Bones"?
a) A person's most important qualities can't be owned
b) A person's remains should be treated with respect
c) People ought to make the most out of what life gives them
d) People shouldn't try to control other people
a) A person's most important qualities can't be owned
Which quote from the poem best supports the idea of "We will outlast our bodies"?
a) This skeleton was just my / temporary home. (lines 3–4)
b) Life’s the best thing that can happen to you. (line 22)
c) You can murder hope, you can pound faith flat, (line 29)
d) What’s essential in you is your longing to raise / your itty-bitty voice. . . . (lines 37–38)
a) This skeleton was just my / temporary home. (lines 3–4)
Why is 1970 important to the selection?
a) It shows a renewed interest in the history of slavery.
b) It suggests that previous owners still wanted the skeleton
c) It refers to a change of thinking about the skeleton.
d) It points to a number of medical advances at the time.
c) It refers to a change of thinking about the skeleton.
In the excerpt from Fortune’s Bones, why does the author most likely explain what happened to Fortune’s body soon after his death?
a) To illustrate the idea that enslaved people didn’t often live long lives
b) To show that slave owners didn’t regard those they enslaved as human beings
c) To emphasize that slave owners made unreasonable demands, even after death
d) To indicate that enslaved people were worthy of respect, even after death
b) To show that slave owners didn’t regard those they enslaved as human beings
Which detail from the poem best expresses the primary message?
a)"This skeleton was just my temporary home"
b)"Life's the best thing that can happen to you."
c) You can own someone's body,/ but their soul runs free."
c) You can own someone's body,/ but their soul runs free."
Which statement explains what the speaker of “Not My Bones” most likely means by the clause you are not your bones in line 34?
a) One’s soul is more important than one’s bones.
b) A person’s physical form is what matters most.
c) A person’s body and bones can overcome the person’s mind.
d) One’s body is more important than one’s bones.
a) One’s soul is more important than one’s bones.
What is the significance of the last line of the text, "But he was free"?
a) Fortune and his family were free after Dr. Porter's death.
b) Fortune managed to escape from slavery before he died.
c) Fortune's family reclaimed his bones from the Mattatuck Museum.
d) Fortune's true identity and story were finally revealed.
d) Fortune's true identity and story were finally revealed.
Which statement best explains how Fortune’s experience is depicted in the two selections?
a) In the excerpt from Fortune’s Bones, Fortune doesn’t think about his own freedom, while in “Not My Bones,” the speaker only thinks about his own freedom.
b) In the excerpt from Fortune’s Bones, Fortune escapes enslavement, while in “Not My Bones,” the speaker always remains enslaved.
c) In both selections, Fortune finds a form of freedom.
d) In both selections, Fortune never finds any freedom.
c) In both selections, Fortune finds a form of freedom.
What is the effect of the personification in lines 5–6 of “Not My Bones”?
a) It provides a clue to readers that the speaker has died.
b) It makes clear the movements of molecules in the body.
c) It conveys the idea that people are more than their bodies.
c) It conveys the idea that people are more than their bodies.
In “Not My Bones,” the poet’s use of figurative language helps to —
a) show that the speaker has left the anguish of slavery behind
b) illustrate that slavery was widespread before it was abolished
c) show how enslaved people despised anyone who claimed to own them
d) illustrate how people who owned slaves controlled those they enslaved
a) show that the speaker has left the anguish of slavery behind
Which organizational pattern does the author mainly use in the excerpt from Fortune’s Bones?
Chronological
In the excerpt from Fortune’s Bones, why does the author most likely explain what happened to Fortune’s body soon after his death?
a) To illustrate the idea that enslaved people didn’t often live long lives
b) To show that slave owners didn’t regard those they enslaved as human beings
c) To emphasize that slave owners made unreasonable demands, even after death
d) To indicate that enslaved people were worthy of respect, even after death
To show that slave owners didn’t regard those they enslaved as human beings
What is the meaning of the simile in lines 19–20 of “Not My Bones”?
a) Owning a person’s mind is as impossible as riding on the wind.
b) A person’s body is as much a prison as a bridle used on horses.
c) Freeing a person’s mind is as inevitable as feeling a cool breeze.
d) Bodies are as impermanent as the wind.
a) Owning a person’s mind is as impossible as riding on the wind.
In "Not My Bones" what idea is emphasized through the use of repetition?
The repetition emphasizes that we are much more than our physical bodies.
In the excerpt from Fortune’s Bones, how does the author help readers understand the
chronology of events in paragraph 5?
a) By using specific words and phrases
b) By using just a few present-tense verbs
c) By specifying the years in which events happened
d) By telling the events in the order in which they happened
c) By specifying the years in which events happened
Does the following statement apply to "Not My Bones" or "Fortune's Bones"
The enslaved person’s bones signified something other than bones.
"Not My Bones"