Question

he had lived up to his familys accidental surname. starling. distant cousin to the mockingbird. he had spoken up about what he had seen in the world he was born into, like the starling that sang mozarts own music back to him or the starling out of shakespeare that tormented the king by speaking the name of mortimer. only, george was paying the price for tormenting the ruling class that owned the citrus groves. there was no place in the jim crow south for a colored starling like him. use context to determine the meaning of the word starling as it is used in the warmth of other suns. write your definition of starling here and explain which clues helped you figure it out.

Explanation:

The text mentions that the starling "sang Mozart's own music back to him" and "tormented the king by speaking the name of Mortimer". These are actions that show the starling is a bird that can mimic sounds (like singing Mozart's music) and be a bit of a troublemaker (tormenting the king). Also, it's compared to a mockingbird (a type of bird) as a "distant cousin".

Answer:

A starling is a type of bird. The clues are "Distant cousin to the mockingbird" (since mockingbird is a bird, so starling is likely a bird too), "the starling that sang Mozart's own music back to him" (birds can sing) and "the starling out of Shakespeare that tormented the king" (birds can make sounds that could be considered tormenting if they repeat things like a name).