Mother to son by langston hughes

well, son, i’ll tell you:
life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.
it’s had tacks in it,
and splinters,
and boards torn up,
and places with no carpet on the floor—
bare.
but all the time
i’se been a-climbin’ on,
and reachin’ landin’s,
and turnin’ corners,
and sometimes goin’ in the dark
where there ain’t been no light.
so boy, don’t you turn back.
don’t you set down on the steps
’cause you finds it’s kinder hard.
don’t you fall now—
for i’se still goin’, honey,
i’se still climbin’,
and life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.

answer the following question related to the passage titled "mother to son": what is the 'crystal stair' symbolic of within the poem?

group of answer choices

an easy, smooth, beautiful life

a see-through life

a delicate, breakable life

a dirty, dingy life

An easy, smooth, beautiful life.

Explanation:

In this poem, the image of the crystal stair is used to convey the idea of an easy, smooth, beautiful life. This is because crystal stairs are not only beautiful, but they also represent an easy, safe way to move. Instead, the mother describes her life as a stair with tacks, splinters, boards torn up, dark and lacking carpet on the floor. These images convey the opposite image of the crystal stair, indicating that the speaker's life has been very difficult.

explanation:

you only need simple sentences to answer this. just answer these questions.

what do you think annie thinks of the mother? do you think annie believes the mother is a fit mother for helen.

what about the father? what would annie think of him? she might not like him, but does she respect him.

how about the son? would annie think he is the only voice of sanity in an insane place?

what about helen herself? this is the key question. how does she see helen? what do you suppose she thought her first job was going to be.

these aren't hard questions. just state the obvious. annie is not that well educated: she just knows what she has to do. write it that way.

you can do it if you've read the book or seen the play or movie.