The first stanza of Countee Cullen's "A Brown Girl Dead" reads: "With two white roses on her breasts,/White candles at head and feet,/Dark Madonna of the grave she rests;/Lord Death has found her sweet." Which of the following statements accurately characterizes these lines ?
Correct answer: D. Both A and B
- A. These lines evoke Christian imagery to emphasize the dignity of the girl who died.
- B. These lines evoke Christian imagery to suggest that death erases racial divisions.
- C. These lines present the problem of racial prejudice in an ironic mode.
- D. Both A and B
Explanation
The roses, candles, Madonna, and Lord Death draw on Christian devotional imagery, giving the dead girl sacred dignity. The contrast between “white” ritual objects and the “Dark Madonna” also presents death as a spiritual realm in which racial distinction loses its social force.
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