Question

Read this excerpt from the poem and explain whether Ferlinghetti is proud of America’s achievements as a new empire. Provide reasons for your answer.
Why are you staring at me

as if I were America itself

the new Empire

vaster than any in ancient days

with its electronic highways

carrying its corporate monoculture

around the world

And English the Latin of our days—

Answer 1

Answer:

In this excerpt Ferlinghetti is not proud of new America.

Explanation:

Ferlinghetti's way of referring to the new America shows us that he is not proud.

There is much irony in his words when he speaks of "the vast empire carrying its corporate monoculture around the world."

The new America is more technological than with values and that is what is criticized in this excerpt.

Even if we search the full text we can see how Ferlinghetti talks about "to save us from ourselves and how to survive our own rulers".

So we can conclude that he is not proud of New America.