16Hit1600
Information and IdeasHardCentral idea of a literary passage

Information and Ideas practice question

The following text is from a short story. Mara had rehearsed the speech for a week, and when the moment came she found she could not give it, because the man she had rehearsed it against was not the man in front of her. He was older, and tired, and had brought her a cup of tea without being asked. The speech was for someone else. She drank the tea.

Which choice best states the central idea of the text?

  1. A. Mara's prepared anger dissolves when the real person turns out not to match the figure she had imagined.Correct
  2. B. Mara gives her speech and is satisfied.
  3. C. Mara dislikes tea.
  4. D. The man refuses to listen to Mara.

Answer: A. Mara's prepared anger dissolves when the real person turns out not to match the figure she had imagined.

The speech was for an imagined man; the real one brought tea.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. Mara gives her speech and is satisfied.
She cannot give it.
C. Mara dislikes tea.
She drinks it.
D. The man refuses to listen to Mara.
He is not shown refusing anything.

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