Read the poem.


Incident

by Countee Cullen



Once riding in old Baltimore,

Heart-filled, head-filled with glee,

I saw a Baltimorean

Keep looking straight at me.


Now I was eight and very small,

And he was no whit bigger,

And so I smiled, but he poked out

His tongue, and called me, “Ni*ger.”


I saw the whole of Baltimore

From May until December;

Of all the things that happened there

That's all that I remember.




Which statement best describes the role that hyperbole plays in developing the theme of “Incident”?


It expresses the themes of the poem by creating vivid imagery.


It adds to the tone of the poem by creating suspense.


It reinforces the significance of a single word.


It emphasizes the author’s innocence.