Question

Read the excerpt from "Poetry."

When they become so derivative as to become
unintelligible,
the same thing may be said for all of us, that we
do not admire what
we cannot understand: the bat
holding on upside down or in quest of something to

eat, elephants pushing, a wild horse taking a roll, a tireless
wolf under
a tree, the immovable critic twitching his skin like a horse
that feels a flea, the base-
ball fan, the statistician—

What theme does this excerpt express?

a Most people have very similar interests.
b People do not like what they cannot understand.
c People are more interested in animals than poetry.
d Most people are tired of their interests.

Answer 1

b People do not like what they cannot understand.

Step-by-step explanation:

It is clearly stated in the text itself:

"When they become so derivative as to become unintelligible, the same thing may be said for all of us, that we do not admire what we cannot understand"

The author then continues to cite examples of things that most people, or at least the author, don't really know the meaning off. The objective is to convince the reader of the truthfulness of the author's statement by showing examples of things that we don't really know the reason behind it. It is inferred that if we did understand, maybe we should be able to appreciate.

Answer 2

people do not like what they cannot understand