Describe Narrator/Speaker: Poetry Practice Test

Read the following poem excerpt:

Title: "First Snow in the City"

The sidewalk vendors pack their carts

like closing books.

Snow starts—thin, apologetic—

and the sirens stitch it down.

I watch my neighbor’s kid

catch flakes on his tongue,

as if the sky is finally paying him back.

How does the bolded phrase shape the speaker’s perspective on the scene?

Read the following poem excerpt:

Title: "On Being the Oldest"

My siblings call when bills arrive.

I translate fine print

into something they can swallow.

At dinner, I laugh first,

setting the table for everyone’s mood.

Later, alone, I rinse plates

until my hands forget

they’re mine.

Which choice best describes the speaker’s role in the family, as conveyed by the bolded phrase?