“ladies and gentlemen—” said the ballerina, reading the bulletin. she must have been extraordinarily beautiful, because the mask she wore was hideous. and it was easy to see that she was the strongest and most graceful of all the dancers, for her handicap bags were as big as those worn by two-hundred-pound men. what is ironic about this excerpt? the ballerina is described as beautiful, but she is actually hideous. the news bulletin being read on the television is about harrison. the ballerina is able to read the news bulletin flawlessly while wearing a mask and handicap bags. the handicaps devised to conceal the ballerina’s strength and beauty actually accentuate them.

Read the excerpt from the poem "growing up italian" by maria mazziotti gillan and answer the question that follows. when i was a little girl, i thought everyone was italian, and that was good. we visted our aunts and uncles, and they visted us. the italian language smooth and sweet in my mouth. in kindergarten, english words fell on me, thick and sharp as hail. i grew silent, the italian word balanced on the edge of my tongue and the english word, lost during the first moment of every question. source: gillan, maria mazziotti. "growing up italian." poetrymagazine.com. poetry magazine, n.d. web. 30 mar. 2011. what is the tone of this poem? what does the tone reveal about the speaker of the poem and the conflict she faces? based on this excerpt, what can you predict about the theme of the poem?