Question

read the excerpt from \the negro artist and the racial mountain\
but to my mind, it is the duty of the younger negro artist, if he accepts any duties at all from outsiders, to change through the force of his art that old whispering \i want to be white,\ hidden in the aspirations of his people, to \why should i want to be white? i am a negro—and beautiful?\
in this context, what is the meaning of \aspirations\?
ambitions
beliefs
curiosities
complexities

Explanation:

To determine the meaning of "aspirations" in the context, we analyze the sentence: the old whispering "I want to be white" is a belief or desire within the people's thoughts. "Aspirations" here refers to the hopes or desires (similar to beliefs in terms of being internal thoughts/desires about identity). "Ambitions" is more about goals, "Curiosity" is about interest, "complexities" is about complications—none fit as well as "beliefs" in terms of internal thoughts about identity and desire.

Answer:

Beliefs