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Lucille Clifton, the AwardWinning Poet, was the First African American Poet Laureate of Maryland.
Critics call her one of the greatest writers of our time.
Lucille Clifton was born Thelma Lucille Sayles in Depew, New York in 1936. She was named
Thelma after her mother. Lucille was the name of one of her father's ancestors. When the younger one
got older she chose to call herself Lucille.
Lucille Clifton began writing poetry when she was about ten years old. She had developed an interest
in poetry because of her mother, Thelma Sayles. Her mother was also a poet although her poems were
never published. As a child Lucille would sit on her mother's lap and listen as she read poetry. She
learned to love words and the power of words. That stayed with her as she grew.
While her mother taught her to love poetry, her father gave her the gift of storytelling. He would tell
Lucille interesting stories about her ancestors, especially the one named Lucille who was his grandmother. Samuel Clifton said she was the first black woman to be legally hanged in the state of Virginia. Lucille
Clifton wrote about it in her poem called "Lucy".
She often talked about her love for words. She loved the sound of words and the way the words felt
in her mouth. She loved finding interesting ways to use words to express what was happening in the
world.
Unlike her mother, Lucille Clifton's poetry was anything but traditional. Her poems do not rhyme or
follow a special kind of pattern. They do not use fancy words. They do not deal in makebelieve. Her
poetry is known for being simple, truthful and direct. It is written the way people speak, in a casual,
relaxed language. There is very little punctuation(标点) and even less capitalization. Many of the poems
are uncomfortably honest. Lucille Clifton often said that she tried to comfort the afflicted and afflict the
comfortable. Over the years, she seems to have perfected that art.
1. Which of the following may be the reason why Lucille Clifton chose to call herself Lucille instead of
Thelma?
A. To show her love to her mother.
B. To show her love to her beloved teacher.
C. To show respect to her greatgrandmother.
D. To show her respect to a great poet.
2. From the passage, we know that Lucille Clifton is ________.
A. funny
B. creative
C. selfish
D. beautiful
3. What is the main idea of the last paragraph?
A. Lucille Clifton's great works.
B. Lucille Clifton's poem background.
C. Lucille Clifton's poem style.
D. Lucille Clifton's poem words.
4. The underlined word "it" in the fourth paragraph probably refers to ________.
A. Samuel Clifton
B. Samuel Clifton's experience
C. Samuel Clifton's grandmother
D. Lucille's great grandmother's story
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