JAMB - Literature In English (2001 - No. 21)
Not yet old enough for a man, nor young enough for a boy; as a squash is before 't is almost an apple; 't is with him in standing water, between boy and man. He is very well-favoured, and he speaks very shrewishly; one would think his mother's milk were scarce out of him.
The images in the quotation above express the speaker's
contempt and admiration
hatred and pity
contempt and disregard
disregard and pity
Explanation
In this passage from Twelfth Night, the speaker (Feste) describes someone who is in the awkward phase between childhood and adulthood. The use of "squash" and "codling" (unripe fruits) as metaphors highlights how the person is neither fully a boy nor a man. The speaker's comment on the person's "shrewish" speech and the suggestion that "his mother's milk were scarce out of him" expresses disdain and a lack of respect.
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