Question

phs: literature & compre - block (23.0616030)
characters, conflict, and idioms in \daughter of invention\ by julia alvarez
\daughter of invention\
from how the garcia girls lost their accents
her daughters would seek her out at night when she seemed to have a moment to talk to
them: they were having trouble at school or they wanted her to persuade their father to give
them permission to go into the city or to a shopping mall or a movie—in broad daylight,
mami laura would wave them out of her room. \the problem with you girls...\ the
problem boiled down to the fact that they wanted to become americans and their father—
and their mother, too, at first—would have none of it.
\you girls are going to drive me crazy!\ she threatened, if they kept nagging. \when i end
up in bellevue, youll be safely sorry!\
she spoke in english when she argued with them. and her english was a mishmash of
mixed-up idioms and sayings that showed she was \green behind the ears,\ as she called
it
if her husband insisted she speak in spanish to the girls so they wouldnt forget their native
tongue, shed snap, \when in rome, do unto the romans.\
yoyo, the big mouth, had become the spokesman for her sisters, and she stood her ground
in that bedroom. \were not going to that school anymore, mami!\
\you have to.\ her eyes would widen with worry. \in this country, it is against the law not to
go to school! you want us to get thrown out?\
\you want us to get killed? those kids were throwing stones today!\
\sticks and stones dont break bones,\ she chanted. yoyo could tell, though, by the look
on her face, it was as if one of those stones the kids had aimed at her daughters had hit
too. but she always pretended they were at fault. \what did you do to provoke them? it
read the excerpt from \daughter of invention.\
\maybe not. maybe, just maybe, theres something theyve missed thats important.
with patience and calm, even a burro can climb a palm.\ this last was one of her many
dominican sayings she had imported into her scrambled english
which english idiom has the same meaning as the one underlined in this excerpt?
you are barking up the\twrong tree.
let sleeping dogs lie.
slow and steady wins the\trace.
were all in the same\tboat

Explanation:

First, we analyze the idiom from the excerpt: "With patience and calm, even a burro can climb a palm" implies that with perseverance, even a difficult task (a burro climbing a palm, which is hard) can be done. Now we analyze each option:

• "You are barking up the wrong tree": Means accusing the wrong person or pursuing the wrong course, not related to perseverance.
• "Slow and steady wins the race": Means consistent, patient effort leads to success, matching the meaning of the Dominican saying.
• "Let sleeping dogs lie": Means not disturbing a situation, different from perseverance.
• "We're all in the same boat": Means we share the same situation, not about perseverance.

Answer:

B. Slow and steady wins the race