The authors purpose in writing this speech is to ?

To inform the reader, to persuade the reader, or simply to entertain.

Explanation:

the answer is:  

he is voicing feelings shared by all humans regardless of race.

in paul laurence dunbar's poem "we wear the mask," he replicates the words mask and we to emphasize how people in general -not just black americans- hide their true feelings. he suggests the masks cover people's faces and eyes, which are the main parts that display their emotions. he also thinks people's pain conceal behind those masks, so that they cannot see reality and nobody is able to see one another's sorrow.

explanation:

you only need simple sentences to answer this. just answer these questions.

what do you think annie thinks of the mother? do you think annie believes the mother is a fit mother for helen.

what about the father? what would annie think of him? she might not like him, but does she respect him.

how about the son? would annie think he is the only voice of sanity in an insane place?

what about helen herself? this is the key question. how does she see helen? what do you suppose she thought her first job was going to be.

these aren't hard questions. just state the obvious. annie is not that well educated: she just knows what she has to do. write it that way.

you can do it if you've read the book or seen the play or movie.