Answer:
The early period of the Romantic era was a time of war, with the French Revolution (1789–1799) followed by the Napoleonic Wars until 1815. These wars, along with the political and social turmoil that went along with them, served as the background for Romanticism.
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The main character is Maud Martha, a girl who’s probably in her early teens. She is sitting with Mama (her mother) and Helen (her sister, probably in her late teens) in rocking chairs on the front porch of their house. The family is waiting for Papa to come home from work. On his lunch break, he was planning to go to the mortgage company to try to get an extension on their payments. The family is tense; they’re thinking about what they’ll do if Papa’s request is rejected. Optimistically, Mama suggests they might move to an apartment that’s better than the house. The girls know that would be too expensive for them, but Helen says her friends might visit more if she lived in a better neighborhood. Maud Martha comments on how nice it was having a fire going in the fireplace during the winter. This makes everyone sad. Maud Martha exclaims that losing the house would kill Papa. Helen contradicts her, claiming Papa loves them, not the house. Mama leaves the fate of the house in God’s hands. Papa comes home, greets the family, and goes inside. Everyone is excited. Mama goes inside with him. Soon, Mama tells the girls that Papa arranged the extension and the house is safe. Helen says she wants to have a party, so her friends will know they’re home owners, not renters.
Answer + Explanation:
The People Could Fly, the title story in Virginia Hamiltons prize-winning American Black <u>folktale collection</u>, is a <em>fantasy tale</em> of the slaves who possessed the ancient magic words that enabled them to literally fly away to freedom.