Use the passage to think about the story’s central symbol.

what symbol does this passage describe?

a. the bleeding tree

b. the scarlet ibis

c. death

what is the literal meaning of this symbol?

a. a flower

b. a bird

c. a plant

1. the scarlet ibis 2. a bird 3. doodle

Explanation:

active voice: my father cut the tree.

passive voice: the tree was cut by my father.

active voice: people buy newspapers every day.

passive voice: newspapers are bought (by people) every day.

active voice: people have been using movies as political propaganda since world war ii.

passive voice: movies have been used as political propaganda since world war ii.

active voice: donna gave me my birthday present.

passive voice: i was given my birthday present (by donna). / my birthday present was given to me (by donna).

active voice: mom will leave the keys on the counter.

passive voice: the keys will be left (by mom) on the counter.

the words in parentheses are the agent of the passive voice and can be omitted when obvious, generic, or simply unnecessary.