Question

Read the excerpt from "Blues on a Box” by Langston Hughes.

Play your guitar, boy,
Till yesterday’s
Black cat
Runs out tomorrow’s
Back door

What does the figurative language in this excerpt show?
( A ) The speaker wants to remember the past.
( B ) The speaker is afraid of attracting bad luck.
( C ) The speaker enjoys playing the guitar with close friends.
( D ) The speaker believes that music can get rid of misfortune.

Answer 1

The answer is D, or The speaker believes that music can get rid of misfortune.

Step-by-step explanation:

The figurative language in this excerpt describes personification, implying that yesterday has a black cat and tomorrow has a back door. The speaker tells the boy in this excerpt to play his guitar until the black cat runs out of tomorrow’s back door. In reality, black cats signify bad luck or misfortune. Because the speaker tells the boy to keep playing his guitar, this shows D to be the most reasonable answer.