A. edifice B. somber C. assuage D. gravity E. cacophony f. diatribe g. profane 12. William was awakened out of a sound sleep by the of the two cats screaming and fighting.

13. Not wanting to be subjected to ___ for coming in past curfew, Niles made sure to arrive on time.

14. “You asked a clown, jugglers, and a magician to perform at graduation?” Paul asked. “Don’t you
understand the ___ associated with such a serious event?”

15. Far from ___ at the wedding in church, Gerald stood up and yelled, “When does the reception start?”

16. Hoping to ___ the crying girl whose doll broke, Madeline stood on her head and began to laugh.

17. Even though my uncle won millions in the lottery, he does not want to live in a magnificent ___; in fact, he never wants to leave the simple home he has always lived in.

18. At the formal dinner, Lonnie refrained from ___ behavior, such as talking with his mouth full of food, in order to impress his date.

could you put the choices and excert up hun

- the mistakes that have been done in the past will repeat themselves

- you will trust all the wrong people

sthe miracle worker  ▾search

home  >   study guides  >   the miracle worker

the miracle worker themeswilliam gibson

themes and meanings

(comprehensive guide to drama)

print  print  document  pdf  list  cite  link  link

there are two central themes in  the miracle worker: that the human spirit can triumph over even the most daunting of disabilities and that a dedicated teacher can transform the lives of those with whom he or she comes into contact. these inspirational themes have long been personified in the widely known true-life relationship between helen keller and annie sullivan, but  the miracle worker  also dramatizes collateral issues that extend beyond the particular case. underlying helen’s process of learning basic principles of what annie terms “obedience” (decorum, etiquette, and hygiene), there are more universal lessons of self-governance—the inculcation of self-restraint instead of willfulness, the development of self-discipline instead of self-indulgence. only when these lessons have been mastered can helen begin to acquire language—which, annie says, “is to the mind more than light is to the eye.”