16Hit1600
Craft and StructureMediumFunction of a rhetorical question

Craft and Structure practice question

Why does the town still ring a bell at nine each evening, three centuries after the curfew it announced was abolished? Nobody can say. The ringers themselves offer only that it has always been done, which is an explanation of a kind.

Which choice best describes the function of the opening question?

  1. A. It poses a puzzle that the text then admits cannot be fully answered.Correct
  2. B. It explains the origin of the bell.
  3. C. It argues that the bell should stop.
  4. D. It describes the sound of the bell.

Answer: A. It poses a puzzle that the text then admits cannot be fully answered.

A question, then 'Nobody can say' — the puzzle is raised and left open.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. It explains the origin of the bell.
The origin (a curfew) is mentioned in passing; the question is about why it continues.
C. It argues that the bell should stop.
No argument for stopping.
D. It describes the sound of the bell.
The sound is not described.

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