What could you compare the eighth century bards with from the twenty-first century? *

I guess you could compare bards to current rappers or singers. Bards were basically professional "verse makers", music composers, or storytellers so i'd compare that to a rapper or singer.

1.d

1.e                                  

2.c

3.c

the answer is:  

he is voicing feelings shared by all humans regardless of race.

in paul laurence dunbar's poem "we wear the mask," he replicates the words mask and we to emphasize how people in general -not just black americans- hide their true feelings. he suggests the masks cover people's faces and eyes, which are the main parts that display their emotions. he also thinks people's pain conceal behind those masks, so that they cannot see reality and nobody is able to see one another's sorrow.