Question

My friend had concluded that if he took his language and culture out of his poetry, he stood a better chance of receiving a fellowship. He took out his native language, the poetic patois of our reality, the rich mixture of Spanish, English, pachuco and street talk which we know so well. In other words, he took the tortillas out of his poetry, which is to say he took the soul out of his poetry. At a neighborhood fair in Texas, somewhere between the German Oom-pah Sausage Stand and the Mexican Gorditas booth, I overheard a young man say to his friend, “I wish I had a heritage. Sometimes I feel—so lonely for one.” And the tall American trees were dangling their thick branches right down over his head. Which best states how the word choice is similar in both excerpts?

Each author uses non-English words and figurative language.
Each author uses technical words and neutral language.
Each author uses nonsense words and invented language.
Each author uses confrontational words and persuasive language.

Answer 1

The answer is A.

Step-by-step explanation:

for those who needs the answer right away.

Answer 2

The correct answer is: Each author uses non-English words and figurative language.

Indeed, the first author uses several Mexican Spanish words as “pachuco” and “tortillas” to provide ethnic color to his narration. Then, he uses figurative language (he took the tortillas out of his poetry) which is followed by a very explicit explanation, that the character in question “took the soul out of his poetry”.

The second author also uses foreign, non-English words such as “Oom-pah” and “Gorditas”.

Then, he uses figurative language and there is a hint of irony in the description that immediately follows the dialogue. The immediate landscape is used to show the “heritage-deprived” person that he actually does have a heritage. In other words, he does not need to be a hyphenated American in order to have a heritage because it is right there “dangling over his head”.

The symbolism of the “tall American tree” is used to show how the speaker of these lines that America has its own heritage, which lies in its history, its melting pot and its territory and he cannot even see it.