Question

escape to freedom
history writing by laura phillips

1. on may 13, 1862, just outside charleston harbor, south carolina, the union naval commander of the uss onward was about to give the order to fire on an armed confederate steamship heading his way. then he noticed a white flag of surrender on the steamer’s mast. the pilot of the boat was an enslaved african american named robert smalls, who was attempting to escape by stealing the confederate ship!
2. smalls was born into slavery on april 5, 1839, in beaufort, south carolina. by the time he was 12 years old, his master began to hire him out to do various jobs in charleston. smalls eventually worked at the docks, learning how to make sails and paint ships. he also learned how to read nautical maps. over time, he became an excellent sailor and navigator. he could steer any ship through narrow waterways without running into rocks.
3. in 1861, smalls was working on a 150 - foot steamboat called the planter. the powerful steamer had been turned into a confederate army ferry and supply gunboat. it was the fastest vessel in the harbor and, as such, was the most important ship in the local southern fleet.
4. since april 1861, the southern army had held fort sumter, a large defensive island fort at the mouth of charleston harbor. beyond the harbor was a blockade of northern ships. smalls and his wife, hannah, dreamed of escaping from slavery and raising their two children in freedom. smalls believed that he and his family might be free if they could make it to the blockade.
5. in the early morning hours of may 13, the planter’s three white officers left the ship to spend the night ashore. seizing the opportunity, smalls and the majority of the other enslaved crewmembers set an escape plan in motion. they decided to steal the ship, but they agreed that if anything went wrong, they would blow it up to avoid capture.
6. the crew fired up the boat’s boilers and set off. smalls first picked up his family and the families of the other crewmen from a nearby island. with nine men, five women, and three children aboard, the planter headed toward the mouth of the harbor.

identify the two underlined words from paragraph 9 of “escape to freedom” that contribute to the author’s respectful tone toward smalls.
upon hearing the story of smalls’s escape from slavery, a writer at the new york times declared the (a) deed to be “one of the most (b) heroic acts of the war.” if they had been caught, the punishment would have been (c) severe. smalls and his fellow crewmembers were (d) awarded the prize (e) money for the confederate vessel
options: deed, heroic, severe, awarded, money

Explanation:

To determine words contributing to a respectful tone toward Smalls, we analyze each:

• "deed": Refers to Smalls' escape, a neutral term.
• "heroic": Describes his act as heroic, showing admiration and respect.
• "severe": Describes punishment, not about Smalls directly.
• "awarded": Is about receiving a prize, neutral.
• "money": Is about the prize, neutral.

So "heroic" (and "deed" could also be considered, but "heroic" emphasizes positive respect) is a key word. However, the question asks for two; "deed" (acknowledging his action) and "heroic" (praising the action) both contribute. But from the options, the two that best show respect are "deed" (recognizing his action) and "heroic" (praising it). But focusing on the most probable for respect, "heroic" and "deed" are the two. But let's confirm: The writer calls his deed "one of the most heroic acts", so both "deed" (the action) and "heroic" (the positive judgment) contribute to respectful tone.

Answer:

A. deed, B. heroic