Read the following excerpt from The Way to Rainy Mountain by N. Scott

Momaday:

I do not speak Kiowa, and I never understood her prayers,

but there was something inherently sad in the sound, some

merest hesitation upon the syllables of sorrow. She began

in a high and descending pitch, exhausting her breath to

silence; then again and again-and always the same

intensity of effort, of something that is, and is not like

urgency in the human voice. Transported so in the dancing

light among the shadows of her room, she seemed beyond

the reach of time

Which phrase in the passage most strongly contributes to its overall tone?

A. high and descending pitch

B. syllables of sorrow

C. Transported in the dancing light

D. Always the same intensity

Question

Ernest Green

English

26 October, 06:17

Read the following excerpt from The Way to Rainy Mountain by N. Scott

Momaday:

I do not speak Kiowa, and I never understood her prayers,

but there was something inherently sad in the sound, some

merest hesitation upon the syllables of sorrow. She began

in a high and descending pitch, exhausting her breath to

silence; then again and again-and always the same

intensity of effort, of something that is, and is not like

urgency in the human voice. Transported so in the dancing

light among the shadows of her room, she seemed beyond

the reach of time

Which phrase in the passage most strongly contributes to its overall tone?

A. high and descending pitch

B. syllables of sorrow

C. Transported in the dancing light

D. Always the same intensity

+2

Answers (2)

Know the Answer?

Dario Graham · Answer 1

B. syllables of sorrow

Explanation:

Navarre Scott Momaday's "The Way to Rainy Mountain" (1969) is a folkore book about Scott's Kiova's ancestors. In this specific paragraph, the author is talking about her grandmother. The last time N. Scott saw her grandmother, she was praying at nigh in their ritual style.

These lines are about her prayers, which the author could not understand, but he did know that the prayers were about many sufferings and hope she had seen in her life. The tone of the paragraph is sad. The phrase "Syllables of sorrow" strongly contributes to the overall sad tone of this passage.

Gisselle Orr · Answer 2

B. syllables of sorrow