Question

Read the poem.

A Black Man Talks of Reaping
by Arna Bontemps

I have sown beside all waters in my day.
I planted deep, within my heart the fear
that wind or fowl would take the grain away.
I planted safe against this stark, lean year.

I scattered seed enough to plant the land
in rows from Canada to Mexico
but for my reaping only what the hand
can hold at once is all that I can show.

Yet what I sowed and what the orchard yields
my brother’s sons are gathering stalk and root;
small wonder then my children glean in fields
they have not sown, and feed on bitter fruit.
Question
What does the line "my children glean in fields they have not sown, and feed on bitter fruit" from "A Black Man Talks of Reaping" suggest?
Responses

The speaker’s children must participate in harvesting the crops if they want to eat well.

No matter how hard the speaker works to grow food, most of the crops are not edible.
The speaker’s children are given leftovers because they did not help their father with the harvest.
The speaker’s children are given leftovers because they did not help their father with the harvest.

Despite working hard in the fields, Black farmers faced injustice while trying to feed their families.

Answer 1

From "A Black Man Talks of Reaping", the line "my children glean in fields they have not sown and feed on bitter fruit" suggests: D. Despite working hard in the fields black farmers faced injustice while trying to feed their families.

About "A Black Man Talks of Reaping"

"A Black Man Talks of Reaping" is a poem written by Arna Bontemps. The poem actually speaks of how black Americans laboured hard but they are left alone while white Americans just reap and enjoy the harvest.

We can see that the lines actually reveal that despite working hard in the fields black farmers faced injustice while trying to feed their families.