{"database": "rubrics", "table": "rubric_gradations", "rows": [[30, "L-FIGURATIVE", "performance", 2, "Developing", "Student recognizes that figurative language exists and can identify common devices, but interpretation stays at the surface \u2014 names the device and gestures at its importance without explaining how it creates a specific effect on meaning. Detects that near-synonyms feel different but explains the difference in vague terms ('it sounds stronger' or 'it's more vivid') without connecting connotation to the text's specific context or purpose. The student knows figurative language matters but can't yet articulate what it does.", "The line 'the city gnawed at its own bones' is a metaphor. The poet is comparing the city to an animal that's eating itself, which I think represents how the city is falling apart. This metaphor is effective because it creates a really vivid image and makes the poem more interesting \u2014 you can picture it in your mind. It also makes the destruction seem more intense than if the poet had just said 'the city was decaying.' For the word choice question, 'gnawed' is stronger than 'chewed' \u2014 it sounds more aggressive and desperate. I think the poet used it to make the image more powerful.", "2026-05-24 00:17:32", "2026-05-26 01:43:59", 1]], "columns": ["id", "skill_code", "dimension", "level", "level_label", "behavioral_description", "sample_response", "created_at", "updated_at", "active_version"], "primary_keys": ["id"], "primary_key_values": ["30"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.4524247273802757}