Read the poem.

Excerpt from “I Explain a Few Things” by Pablo Neruda

And one morning all was aflame and one morning the fires came out of the earth devouring people, and from then on fire, gunpowder from then on, and from then on blood.

Bandits with airplanes and with Moors, bandits with rings and duchesses, bandits with black-robed friars blessing came through the air to kill children, and through the streets the blood of children ran simply, like children’s blood.

Jackals that the jackal would spurn, stones that the dry thistle would bite spitting, vipers that vipers would abhor!

Facing you I have seen the blood of Spain rise up to drown you in a single wave of pride and knives!

Refer to Explorations in Literature for a complete version of this poem.

Which explanation about “I Explain a Few Things” best develops the speaker’s viewpoint that adversity only makes his compatriots stronger?

By stating that citizens will “rise up / to drown you in a single wave,” the speaker indicates they are determined to overcome their opponents.

By describing the “Bandits with airplanes and with Moors,” the speaker demonstrates that these aggressors will not be tolerated.

The image of jackals and vipers illustrates that the opponents are savage and will fight viciously in order to win the war.

The image of flames coming out of the earth to devour people shows the level of suffering the war causes citizens to endure.