ShmoopTube

00:04

Here's your shmoop du jour... If you want to read through this chunk again,

00:07

just pause the video and go for a quick skim...

00:23

Which of the following is the best definition for the word "posthumous" in line 67?

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And here are some potential answers...

00:38

OK, to figure this one out, we may have to go back and see how the word "posthumous" is used.

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But even if we can't figure it out from context clues, we can always break the word down...

00:49

"post...hum...ous"

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Post... like postdated... postscript... postpartum depression... all things that are "after."

00:59

Let's keep that in mind as we go through the answer choices...

01:03

Could posthumous be used to describe an event occurring after the death of its originator?

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The passage talks about how the narrator was born after his father died, so there's a

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good chance this is it.

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And there's that "after" word we're on the lookout for...

01:20

But moving on. What about B? Is it possible that posthumous is referring to David's orphanhood?

01:27

Probably not, since the rest of the passage specifically focuses on how the narrator feels

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about his father being dead. Could posthumous mean that the narrator is

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morbid or unlucky?

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He might not be lucky, but again the passage is more about his dead father.

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Is posthumous suppose to mean humorous or entertaining?

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Not at all. Looks like A is our best option. Posthumous is referring to the fact that David

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was born after his father died.

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We knew our Latin would come in handy...

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