Skill and Form Number: Characters #1
Characters
"Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents," grumbled Jo, lying on the rug.
"It's so dreadful to be poor!" sighed Meg, looking down at her old dress.
"I don't think it's fair for some girls to have plenty of pretty things, and other girls
nothing at all," added little Amy, with an injured sniff.
"We've got Father and Mother, and each other," said Beth contentedly from her
corner.
The four young faces on which the firelight shone brightened at the cheerful words,
but darkened again as Jo said sadly, "We haven't got Father, and shall not have him for
a long time." She didn't say "perhaps never," but each silently added it, thinking of
Father far away, where the fighting was.
from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
1. Based on the selection, which word best characterizes Jo?
A.
B.
C.
D.
happy
hopeful
negative
excited
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In the Country
by A. Gautam
Every day after the wedding, Sarita sat underneath a big fig tree looking sad. She
would sit under the tree after finishing all the chores. At first, I thought she was sad from
having to cook elaborate meals for a family of eight, but she seemed to enjoy cooking.
She sang a song while peeling the potatoes, cleaning the rice, cutting the vegetables,
and making the fire. I had noticed the way she constantly poked the wood into the clay
oven. There was a hint of restlessness about Sarita even during the morning worship
when everybody in my family closed their eyes and listened to her melodious psalms.
She would squat like everybody else in front of the idols but move her knees about
constantly.
Back then, I was a young boy of twelve, and Sarita treated me like her little brother. It
hurt me to see her unhappy. I wanted to ask my brother if he had noticed the sadness in
his wife's eyes, but my brother was a man of few words. He would probably have said
that it is hard for a young woman to leave her parents' home and adopt a new one as
her own. Perhaps he would have expected me to understand that without him having to
say it. I waited for things to change and for Sarita to spend her afternoon talking to the
neighbors or reading a book instead of brooding under the fig tree.
A change came, and it was not what I expected at all. One morning after the morning
meal, my brother, Raj, announced that he was moving to the capital with Sarita.
"She is expecting our first child, and we believe that we need to move to the city to
Skill and Form Number: Characters #1
give the child a better education and healthcare," Raj said without meeting my parents'
eyes.
My mother, who was ready to take a nap on the hemp mattress, got up suddenly—
as if to protest. My father kept looking into my brother's eyes for an explanation. He had
crumpled the newspaper in his hands, but he was silent. Rita, my elder sister, stood by
the door looking very shaken. We all waited for our grandparents, the oldest and the
most respected members of our family, to say something. Only my grandmother took a
break from reading her book and spoke, "If that is what you have decided. You are a
man with your own family now." She stopped my grandfather from saying anything as
he was about to open his mouth.
"We will come home at every festival. We will only be a bus ride away—only five
hours apart," my brother explained his decision. "Now, Ravi has to take responsibility
and look after you," he was talking about me. He did not give the responsibility to Rita,
who was much older and abler than me. She was the right age for marriage, and I knew
she would move away from the house soon.
I would have never left my family and moved so far away, I thought. "You are
abandoning us," I screamed at Raj and stormed out of the house. As I looked back at
my old house falling apart in places and four old people sitting inside it, I realized I
wanted to grow up fast. I needed to show my brother that I was better than him.
2. Which of these best shows what Raj considers most important?
A.
B.
C.
D.
He
He
He
He
thinks his little brother should learn manners and respect.
does what his mother and father think is best for him.
puts his wife and unborn child before everybody else.
cares a lot about what others might think of his decisions.
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3. How does Ravi feel about his brother leaving the village?
A.
B.
C.
D.
hurt, because Sarita does not ask for his opinion
sad, because he feels lonely without his sister-in-law
confused, because his brother is not taking him along
upset, because he feels abandoned by his brother
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4. Which of these best shows that Ravi's relationship with his brother is
troubled?
Skill and Form Number: Characters #1
A.
B.
C.
D.
" 'We will only be a bus ride away—only five hours. . .' "
"I would have never left my family and moved so far. . ."
"My father kept looking into my brother's eyes for. . ."
" 'Now, Ravi has to take responsibility and look after. . ."
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5. Why does Raj decide to move to the city?
A.
B.
C.
D.
to
to
to
to
get his wife far away from his brother
find a suitable husband for his sister
provide a better future for his family
teach his brother lessons about life
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6. What does this passage suggest about how the grandmother feels about
Raj's decision to move?
A.
B.
C.
D.
She
She
She
She
hopes Raj will not move because the family will be separated.
wants Raj to think about moving because it is a big decision.
thinks Raj should make his decision because he has a family.
does not want Raj to move because Ravi is just a young boy.
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The Dance
Deanne could not believe that all of the kids were dancing to the music that her
friend Gina was playing for them. She was used to school dances where most of the
boys stood on one side of the gym trying to embarrass their friends and the girls stood
on the other side of the gym pretending that they were too cool to talk to all those nerdy
boys. She was always one of the few brave souls who decided to throw caution to the
wind and get out on the dance floor.
However, on that night she was the wallflower, while everybody else was throwing
caution to the wind. To tell the truth, she was not really paying attention to the other
kids. She saw them as a shaking and gyrating mass. Her real focus was Gina. She was
happy for her friend, but at the same time, she could not help but think about how she
would have done things differently if she was the DJ.
She worked her way through the mass of kids and towards Gina. When she got to
Skill and Form Number: Characters #1
the stage, she did not congratulate her friend; rather, she told Gina what she would do
differently if she was the DJ. She looked at her friend and said, “The music you are
playing is pretty cool, Gina, but it’s kinda old. I think everybody wants to hear something
new.”
Gina, looking a little annoyed, responded by asking Deanne what made her think the
other kids wanted to hear newer songs. Deanne responded by telling Gina that it was
just “a feeling,” and that she knew that the kids would have more fun if they were
dancing to music they were more familiar with.
Gina, still looking annoyed, said, “Deanne, see that boy over there in the plaid shirt
and matching baseball cap? He was the first person on the dance floor. He didn’t come
out until I started playing old songs.”
“So?” Deanne responded.
“Well,” said Gina, “after he started dancing, that girl right there in the multi-colored
hooded sweatshirt started dancing. That’s when the floodgates opened and everybody
but you got out on the dance floor.”
“What does all of that have to do with anything?” asked Deanne.
“That,” answered Gina, “told me that if I kept those first two dancers moving, the rest
of the kids would follow along. About 15 minutes ago, while you were sulking in the
corner, I put on a new song, and as soon as I did, that kid in the plaid shirt and hat went
and sat down. Had I played another new song, the girl in the hoodie would have left the
dance floor. By the third new song, the entire floor would have been empty.”
Deanne had no idea that Gina put so much thought into what she was going to play.
She spent the rest of the evening standing next to Gina, watching everything she did.
7. Which sentence supports the idea that Deanne hopes to learn from Gina?
A. Had I played another new song, the girl in the hoodie would have left
the dance floor.
B. She spent the rest of the evening standing next to Gina, watching
everything she did.
C. To tell the truth, she was not really paying attention to the other kids.
D. "What does all of that have to do with anything?" asked Deanne.
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8. Deanne doesn't congratulate Gina because she is more interested in
A.
B.
C.
D.
watching the girl in the hooded sweatshirt.
encouraging the apprehensive kids to dance.
how she would have done things differently.
learning how Gina convinced the kids to dance.
Skill and Form Number: Characters #1
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from Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
by Dai Sijie
An old man stood in the middle of the room, pouring grain into the milling hole. He
interrupted his work when we came in and eyed us with suspicion, saying nothing. I
greeted him, not in the Szechuan dialect of our province, but in Mandarin, as if I were an
actor in a film.
“What language is he speaking?” the old man asked Luo, puzzled.
“The official language,” replied Luo. “The language of Beijing. Don’t you speak
Mandarin?
“Where’s Beijing?”
We were taken aback by his question, but when we realized he was speaking in
earnest we couldn’t help laughing. For a moment I almost envied him his complete
ignorance of the outside world.
“Peiping, does that ring a bell?” Luo asked.
“Bai Ping?” the old man said. “Certainly, it’s the big city in the north!”
“They changed the name twenty years ago, little father,” Luo explained. “And this
gentleman here, he speaks the official language of Bai Ping, as you call it.”
9. Why is the old man unable to understand when Luo’s friend speaks to
him, even though he speaks Chinese?
A. Luo's friend spoke too quickly for the old man to understand.
B. The old man was probably hard of hearing.
C. Luo's friend spoke a dialect of Chinese that the old man couldn't
understand.
D. The old man had never heard of Beijing.
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Colin felt the cold wind blowing through his threadbare pants. He could not
remember the last time it was so cold. His legs shook as he tried to remember the
months he spent sleeping in his car in Miami. “It sure was warm there,” he said to
nobody in particular.
It would take more than memories to warm him up. He thought about getting a hot
cup of coffee, but he remembered that he only had twenty-seven cents in his pocket.
“It’s been a long time since twenty-seven cents could buy a cup of coffee,” he said to
himself.
Just then, he saw what he thought was a dollar bill on the sidewalk. “Things are
looking up!” he said to himself before realizing that it was a pizza coupon.
Skill and Form Number: Characters #1
10. The passage above is an example of
A.
B.
C.
D.
direct characterization.
flat characterization.
indirect characterization.
static characterization.
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Skill and Form Number: Characters #1
Answers
1. C
2. C
3. D
4. B
5. C
6. C
7. B
8. C
9. C
10. C
Explanations
1. Characterization is how the writer reveals the characters to the reader.
This includes what a character might say, do, or think. It also includes how
other characters perceive him/her/it. In this passage, Jo says only negative
things, so it is fair to characterize her as negative.
2. This passage shows Raj making a tough decision and possibly upsetting
his family. By moving five hours away from his parents, grandparents, and
siblings, he has chosen his wife and child's future above them.
3. Toward the end of the story, Ravi expresses his opinion about his
brother's decision to leave the village. He storms out of the house after
yelling at Raj. Ravi's behavior and words clearly show that he does not agree
with his brother's decision and is upset.
4. In this story, Ravi expresses how his brother's values are different from
his own. He thinks Raj is abandoning his parents, grandparents and siblings
for his wife and unborn child. The two brothers seem to have different and
strong opinions on "family values" and have a troubled relationship.
5. This story shows a close-knit extended family. Raj, the narrator's older
brother, announces he is moving to the city for his unborn child's education
and healthcare. Thus, he is moving to the city to provide a better future for
his immediate family.
6. The grandmother is the only elder member of the family who speaks out
and responds to Raj's decision. She stops her husband from saying anything
Skill and Form Number: Characters #1
and shows her support on behalf of the family. She says a grown man with
his own family can make his own decision.
7. If Deanne spends the rest of the evening watching Gina play music, the
reader can infer that she hopes to learn more from Gina. One way people
learn is by observing others.
8. In paragraph 3, Deanne goes to the stage and begins telling Gina what
she would do differently. The passage reads, "When she got to the stage,
she did not congratulate her friend; rather, she told Gina what she would do
differently if she was the DJ."
9. This selection from a novel gives clues that the old man was “out of
touch” with the politics of the time, since he had never heard of Beijing. The
official language of the country was now Mandarin, a dialect of Chinese that
the old man didn’t speak. Dialects can be based on a language that’s
familiar, but enough of the words or pronunciations are different that it can
be impossible to understand.
10. Many authors rely on indirect characterization—a technique in which the
reader is left to make assumptions or inferences about a character's
personality. With indirect characterization, the character's actions or words
reveal what the author thinks the reader should know. For example, in this
passage, we learn that Colin is poor and may be homeless. The author lets
readers know this by telling them that Colin is wearing worn-out clothes, has
very little money, and has had to sleep in his car. Had the author chosen to
use direct characterization, he or she would have written something like,
"The cold weather is especially hard on people who are poor and homeless,
people like Colin."