Question

the voice of the voiceless
i am the voice of the voiceless;
through me the dumb shall speak;
till the deaf world’s ear
the cry of the wordless weak
from street, from cage, and from kennel,
from jungle and stall,
the wail
of my homeless brothers that thrall

15
part a: which of the following best describes the theme of the poem? (15)
a embarrassing or learning from who are less fortunate is wrong
b those who are less fortunate should by the lead to be understood by others
c it a person is able, he or she should those to the those who cannot
d there will always be those who cannot fend for themselves

(ii) part b: which detail from the poem best supports the answer to part a? (15)
a “i am the voice of the voiceless;”
b “from street, from cage, and from kennel;”
c “of my homeless brothers that thrall”
d “from jungle and stall, the wail”

Explanation:

For part (a), we analyze each option:

• Option A: The poem's theme is about speaking for the voiceless, not about embarrassing the learned. Eliminate A.
• Option B: The poem emphasizes speaking for those who can't, not about those with less knowledge being wrong. Eliminate B.
• Option C: The poem's lines like "I am the voice of the voiceless" and "Through me the dumb shall speak" suggest a person (the speaker) enabling the voiceless/dumb to be heard, which matches "It is a person who is able, to or who would allow those to be heard who cannot".
• Option D: The poem is about giving voice, not about those who can't find cases of injustice. Eliminate D.

For part (b), we check which detail supports the answer to (a):

• Option A: "I am the voice of the voiceless" directly relates to the idea of a person (the speaker) being the voice for those who can't speak, supporting the answer that it's a person enabling the voiceless to be heard.
• Option B: "From street, from cage, and from kennel" describes where the voiceless are from, not the role of the speaker. Eliminate B.
• Option C: "Of my tortured people the cry" focuses on the cry of tortured people, not the speaker's role. Eliminate C.
• Option D: "From jungle and stall, the wail" describes the wails, not the speaker's role. Eliminate D.

Answer:

(a) C. It is a person who is able, to or who would allow those to be heard who cannot
(b) A. "I am the voice of the voiceless"