My friend had concluded that if he took his language and culture out of his poetry, he stood a better chance of receiving a fellowship. He took out his native language, the poetic patois of our reality, the rich mixture of Spanish, English, pachuco and street talk which we know so well. In other words, he took the tortillas out of his poetry, which is to say he took the soul out of his poetry.

At a neighborhood fair in Texas, somewhere between the German Oom-pah Sausage Stand and the Mexican Gorditas booth, I overheard a young man say to his friend, “I wish I had a heritage. Sometimes I feel—so lonely for one.” And the tall American trees were dangling their thick branches right down over his head.

Which best states how the structures of both excerpts engage the reader?
They employ statistical evidence.
They employ figurative language.
They employ supporting quotes.
They employ an authoritative tone.

Figurative language is a term that refers to the words that are used to express one idea by using another, appealing to a similarity that can be real or imaginary.

According to the above, the texts presented make use of figurative language since they mention characteristic aspects of culture to refer to cultural identity. For instance:

The first author refers to cultural heritage and identity by mentioning "he took the tortillas out of his poetry"
The second author refers to the same idea by saying "Oom-pah sausage stand...Mexian Gorditas booth... tall American tress "

The elements indirectly appeal to the concept of cultural identity and heritage.

According to the above, the correct answer is B. Figurative Language. and options A, C, and D are not correct because they mention other literary resources that refer to other aspects of the texts.

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