Before the end of 1955, most people had never heard of Minnie Mangum. She had worked for many years at a bank in Norfolk, Virginia, and though she was known for being generous with her friends, she was by no means famous. That changed on December 29, 1955, when Mangum was arrested for embezzling about three million dollars. She had used the money she took from the bank to buy gifts for friends and family members, including homes and eighty-five cars. She was sentenced to twenty years in prison. What is the meaning of embezzling as used in the passage

A. printing fake bills

B. borrowing cash from friends

C. stealing from the workplace

D. losing money by gambling

sthe miracle worker  ▾search

home  >   study guides  >   the miracle worker

the miracle worker themeswilliam gibson

themes and meanings

(comprehensive guide to drama)

print  print  document  pdf  list  cite  link  link

there are two central themes in  the miracle worker: that the human spirit can triumph over even the most daunting of disabilities and that a dedicated teacher can transform the lives of those with whom he or she comes into contact. these inspirational themes have long been personified in the widely known true-life relationship between helen keller and annie sullivan, but  the miracle worker  also dramatizes collateral issues that extend beyond the particular case. underlying helen’s process of learning basic principles of what annie terms “obedience” (decorum, etiquette, and hygiene), there are more universal lessons of self-governance—the inculcation of self-restraint instead of willfulness, the development of self-discipline instead of self-indulgence. only when these lessons have been mastered can helen begin to acquire language—which, annie says, “is to the mind more than light is to the eye.”

a, overstatement is the answer