Question

the dog
by oliver herford
1
the dog is black or white or brown
and sometimes spotted like a clown
he loves to make a foolish noise
and human company enjoys.

5
the human people put his head
and teach him to pretend he’s dead,
and beg, and fetch and carry too;
things that no well - bred cat will do.

9
at human jokes, however stale,
he jumps about and wags his tail,
and human people clap their hands
and think he really understands.

b
they say “good dog” to him. to us
they say “poor cat”, and make no fuss.
why dogs are “good”, and cats are “poor”,
i fail to understand, i’m sure.

1. what do human people like about dogs?

a. human people clap their hands.
b. dogs jump about and wag their tails.
c. they say “good dog” to him.
d. the dog is black or white or brown.

1. in the fourth stanza, you can tell the speaker is ____.

a. a dog
b. a human person
c. a cat
d. an outside narrator

1. the cat seems to ____.

a. love dogs as pets
b. think dogs are too mean for a pet
c. think cats are too wild for a pet
d. be a little jealous of dogs

Explanation:

Question 1

To solve this, we analyze each option by referring to the poem "The Dog":

• Option A: The poem says "Human People clap their hands" in the context of the dog's actions? No, the stanza about human clapping is for the dog? Wait, no, let's check the poem. The relevant lines: "At Human jokes, however stale, / He jumps about and wags his tail. / And Human People clap their hands / And think he really understands." Wait, no, the question is "What do Human People like about dogs?". Let's check each option:
• Option A: "Human People clap their hands" – but that's what they do, not what they like. Wait, maybe I misread. Let's check the poem's first stanza: "The Dog is black or white or brown / And sometimes spotted like a clown. / He loves to make a foolish noise / And Human Company enjoys." Wait, no, the options:
• Option B: "Dogs jump about and wag their tails" – from the poem: "At Human jokes, however stale, / He jumps about and wags his tail." So humans like that the dog jumps and wags tail?
• Option C: "They say 'Good Dog' to him" – that's what they say, not what they like.
• Option D: "The Dog is black or white or brown" – that's the dog's color, not what they like. So the correct option is B as the dog's actions (jumping and wagging tail) are what humans like? Wait, no, let's re - check. The poem's lines: "He loves to make a foolish noise / And Human Company enjoys." Wait, maybe I made a mistake. Wait the options:

Wait the first question: "What do Human People like about dogs?"
Let's re - examine each option:

• Option A: "Human People clap their hands" – this is an action they do, not what they like about dogs.
• Option B: "Dogs jump about and wag their tails" – from the poem "At Human jokes, however stale, / He jumps about and wags his tail. / And Human People clap their hands / And think he really understands." So the dog's jumping and wagging tail is something humans react to positively, so they like this behavior.
• Option C: "They say 'Good Dog' to him" – this is what they say, not what they like.
• Option D: "The Dog is black or white or brown" – this is the dog's appearance, not the main thing they like. So the correct answer is B.

In the fourth stanza (let's assume the stanzas: 1st: dog's color and noise; 2nd: teaching dog; 3rd: human jokes and dog's reaction; 4th: maybe the speaker's perspective). Wait, the fourth stanza (we can count: 1. The Dog is black...; 2. The Human People put his head...; 3. At Human jokes...; 4. They say "Good Dog"...) Wait, the question is "In the fourth stanza, you can tell the speaker is...". The options are A (a dog), B (a human person), C (a cat), D (an outside narrator). The fourth stanza (or the part where "They say 'Good Dog' to him. To us / They say 'Poor Cat'... I fail to understand, I'm sure.") The speaker says "I fail to understand", and refers to "us" (cats?) So the speaker is a cat, because it is comparing the treatment of dogs and cats, and says "I fail to understand" (from the cat's perspective). So the speaker is a cat, so option C.

The question is "The cat seems to...". Let's analyze the options:

• Option A: "love dogs as pets" – the poem shows the cat is not happy with the different treatment, so no.
• Option B: "think dogs are too mean for a pet" – the poem doesn't say dogs are mean.
• Option C: "think cats are too wild for a pet" – the poem doesn't say cats are wild.
• Option D: "be a little jealous of dogs" – the poem says "They say 'Good Dog' to him. To us / They say 'Poor Cat', and make no fuss. / Why Dogs are 'good', and Cats are 'poor', / I fail to understand, I'm sure." So the cat is confused and seems jealous because dogs are praised ("good dog") and cats are called "poor cat". So the cat is a little jealous of dogs.

Answer:

B. Dogs jump about and wag their tails.

Question 2