Question

read the poem.
my cat
a bump of black and white
is purring in my bed.
and later on at night
i find him near my head.
the pillow quakes and quivers
like pudding on a plate.
he wakes me up at midnight.
i sure hope he sleeps late!
read these lines from the poem.
the pillow quakes and quivers
like pudding on a plate.
how does the simile affect the meaning of this poem?
○ the speaker is restless and keeps shifting on the pillow and disturbing the cat.
○ the cat is on the speaker’s pillow, moving around and purring, which keeps the speaker awake.
○ the cat is purring because it ate pudding.
○ the speaker can’t sleep because the pillow is covered in cat hair.

Explanation:

To determine the correct interpretation of the line "The pillow quakes and quivers", we analyze each option:

• Option 1: "The speaker is restless..." is incorrect as the pillow's movement is due to the cat, not the speaker disturbing the cat.
• Option 2: "The cat is on the speaker’s pillow, moving around and purring..." matches the poem's context (the cat is near the speaker's head, purring, and the pillow's movement is from the cat's activity, keeping the speaker awake).
• Option 3: There's no mention of the cat purring because it ate pudding; the simile "Like pudding on a plate" describes the cat's appearance or movement, not its diet.
• Option 4: The speaker's sleep issue is due to the cat's midnight activity, not pillow hair (though the first line mentions a black - white bump, the pillow quaking is from the cat, not hair - related sleep disruption).

Answer:

The cat is on the speaker’s pillow, moving around and purring, which keeps the speaker awake.