Lineage
Margaret Walker (1915-1998)
"Lineage" from For My People [1942]
My grandmothers were strong.
They followed plows and bent to toil.
They moved through fields sowing seed.
They touched earth and grain grew.
They were full of sturdiness and singing.
My grandmothers were strong.
My grandmothers are full of memories
Smelling of soap and onions and wet clay
With veins rolling roughly over quick hands
They have many clean words to say.
My grandmothers were strong.
Why am I not as they?
Questions for Discussion
1. The narrator implies that the strength of grandmothers results from their
A) cheery songs
B) long lives
C) large bodies
D) hard work
2. “They touched earth and grain grew” (line 4) suggests the grandmothers’ role of
A) protector
B) provider
C) teacher
D) entertainer
3. In order to emphasize her feelings about her grandmothers, the narrator uses
A) repetition
B) onomatopoeia
C) simile
D) symbolism
4. The narrator’s feeling toward her grandmothers is best described as
A) resentment
B) embarrassment
C) admiration
D) concern
5. In comparison to the grandmothers, the narrator is seen as
A) more nurturing
B) more religious
C) less intelligent
D) less capable
(D) This is an inference question. The narrator implies by describing the hard, physical work of the grandmothers but does not directly state that it results in their strength of character. The reader must infer this. While “large bodies” (choice C) may contribute to physical strength, the narrator is also referring to strength of character. Choice 1 is not substantial enough to produce the effect of strength. Choice B may be a result of strength but does not produce it.
(B) This is an analysis question. In line 3, the narrator states, “They moved through fields sowing seed.” Line 4 is the effect of sowing seed, which is that grain grew. Therefore, the grandmother is a provider. All other choices are not directly relevant to the role of sowing seeds to provide food.
(C) This is an analysis question. The narrator’s tone is one of respect and reverence. In the last line, she states, “Why am I not as they . . .” meaning that she regrets she is not like them. All other choices are negative assessments of the grandmothers, which are not the feelings of the narrator.
(D) This is an analysis question. It builds on the previous question (in test design, that’s called scaffolding). The narrator says in the last line that she is not like them; therefore, she is less capable. Choice A is incorrect because the narrator is seen as less nurturing than the grandmothers. Choices B and C are not part of the narrative.
Childhood [1989]
When I was a child I knew red miners
dressed raggedly and wearing carbide lamps.
I saw them come down red hills to their camps
dyed with red dust from old Ishkooda mines.
Night after night I met them on the roads,
or on the streets in town I caught their glance;
the swing of dinner buckets in their hands,
and grumbling undermining all their words.
I also lived in low cotton country
where moonlight hovered over ripe haystacks,
or stumps of trees, and croppers’ rotting shacks
with famine, terror, flood, and plague near by;
where sentiment and hatred still held sway
and only bitter land was washed away.
Questions for Discussion
1. In the octave, the poet recalls
A) the discontent of the miners
B) the happiness of the miners
C) the efi ciency and competence of the miners
D) a conversation between a child and miners
2. The last three lines suggest that “cotton country” (line 9) is a place where
A) only the land washes away; the hatred, terror, flood, and plague remain
B) all the bitter aspects of life such as hatred, terror, flood, and plague were washed away with the land
C) all the troubles and discontentment such as hatred, terror, flood, and plague are gone once the land is washed away
D) in a land where there are many problems, it will require a flood to rid society of the evils of famine, terror, and plague