16Hit1600
Information and IdeasHardChoosing a quotation that illustrates a claim

Information and Ideas practice question

A student argues that the speaker of a poem feels torn about leaving home — eager to go and yet reluctant.

Which quotation from the poem would best support the student's claim?

  1. A. "I packed with eager hands, then sat an hour on the stairs."Correct
  2. B. "The morning train was late again."
  3. C. "My mother waved until the road bent out of sight."
  4. D. "I never once looked back."

Answer: A. "I packed with eager hands, then sat an hour on the stairs."

The claim has two sides, eagerness and reluctance. Choice A contains both in one line: eager packing, then an hour of sitting still.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. "The morning train was late again."
A late train tells us nothing about the speaker's feelings.
C. "My mother waved until the road bent out of sight."
This describes the mother, not the speaker's mixed feelings.
D. "I never once looked back."
'Never once looked back' suggests no reluctance at all — the opposite of torn.

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