HOW T

O RESPO

ND TO A

QUOTE

WHAT DO I WRITE?

When responding to a quote, you must include the following :

• Establish context

• Point out literary devices employed by the writer

• Explain the significance of the quote

ESTABLISHING CONTEXT

• Who said it?

• To whom?

• About what

• When?

LITERARY DEVICES

• Writers employ literary devices to make a point. You must explain what that point is and how it is conveyed.

• Writers employ…• Figurative language• Parallelism• Cataloging• Metaphor• Diction• Etc.

SIGNIFICANCE

Why should we care about this particular quote? What makes it stand out from the rest?

• How does this quote help the plot progress?

• Does the quote contribute to characterization?

• Does the quote establish conflict?

• How does the quote develop theme?

SAMPLE RESPONSE

T H E Q U O T E

“The gifts opened the door to questions that neither of us wanted to ask. Why did they send us away? and What did we do so wrong? So wrong?

T H E R E S P O N S E

Years after they were sent to Stamps to live with their grandmother, Bailey and Maya receive Christmas presents from their parents. Though a typical child might be happy about receiving gifts, Bailey and Maya cry because “the door to questions that neither of [them] wanted to ask” is opened. The gifts become proof of their parents’ existence and thus, abandonment. If they were not dead as they had told themselves, then “Why did they send [them] away?” The list of questions are the same questions that the reader may have been asking himself as well. With the arrival of the presents, Angelou is marking an important turn of events in the story. Will the children stay in Stamps? Who are their parents? Will they be reunited with them? More questions abound as the plot thickens and the reader senses that a great change is about to take place.