This excerpt from Thomas Gray’s “An Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” expresses the praise stage of an elegy. What does it praise? Oft did the harvest to their sickle yield,
Their furrow oft the stubborn glebe has broke;
How jocund did they drive their team afield!
How bowed the woods beneath their sturdy stroke!

Let not Ambition mock their useful toil,
Their homely joys, and destiny obscure;
Nor Grandeur hear with a disdainful smile,
The short and simple annals of the poor.

A.
the courageous and defiant personalities of country folk
B.
the physical effort and determination of country folk
C.
the hardworking natures and humility of country folk
D.
the simple and minimalistic lifestyle of country folk