Question

Read this excerpt from The Miracle Worker.

ANAGNOS: . . . It will no doubt be difficult for you there, Annie. But it has been difficult for you at our school too, hm? Gratifying, yes, when you came to us and could not spell your name, to accomplish so much here in a few years, but always an Irish battle. For independence.

(He studies ANNIE, humorously; she does not open her eyes.)

This is my last time to counsel you, Annie, and you do lack some – by some I mean all – what, tact or talent to bend. To others. And what had saved you on more than one occasion here at Perkins is that there was nowhere to expel you to. Your eyes hurt?

ANNIE: My ears, Mr. Anagnos.

(And now she has opened her eyes; they are inflamed. Vague, slightly crossed, clouded by the granular growth of trachoma, and she often keeps them closed to shut out the pain of light.)

ANAGNOS [SEVERELY]: Nowhere but back to Tewksbury, where children learn to be saucy. Annie, I know how dreadful it was there, but that battle is dead and done with, why not let it stay buried?

Which of these statements provides the best summary of the scene?

Anagnos notices that Annie’s eyes are closed, and he discusses her life in Tewksbury and her time at Perkins.

Anagnos praises Annie’s work at Perkins and mentions her previous time in Tewksbury, a town on the Ipswich River.

Anagnos is cruel as he expresses doubts about Annie’s ability to leave Perkins and begin teaching.

Anagnos describes Annie’s progress at Perkins and her strong will, and he expresses concerns about her attitude. Thanks!!!

Answer 1

Anagnos discusses Annie's past, her accomplishments, and character at Perkins, highlighting her independence and lack of tact, while Annie suffers from painful inflamed eyes due to trachoma.

Step-by-step explanation:

The scene from The Miracle Worker presents a conversation between Anagnos and Annie wherein Anagnos notes Annie's unwillingness to bend her strong-willed nature and her lack of tact. He acknowledges the difficulties Annie faced both at the Perkins School for the Blind and reflects on her harsh past at Tewksbury. Anagnos humorously points out that Annie's combativeness was tolerated at Perkins because there was nowhere else to send her, referencing the conditions at Tewksbury as 'dreadful'.

Annie's physical pain is referenced through her inflamed eyes caused by trachoma, but she retorts that it is her 'ears' that hurt, likely a response to Anagnos's criticisms. The summary encapsulates the mix of Anagnos’s concern for Annie’s future, the recognition of her accomplishments, and a note on her stubborn nature.

Answer 2

Anagnos praises Annie’s work at Perkins and mentions her previous time in Tewksbury, a town on the Ipswich River.