Question

Consider these versions of The War of the Worlds.

Excerpt 1, from H. G. Wells's novel The War of the Worlds:

I think everyone expected to see a man emerge—possibly something a little unlike us terrestrial men, but in all essentials a man. I know I did. But, looking, I presently saw something stirring within the shadow: greyish billowy movements, one above another, and then two luminous disks—like eyes. Then something resembling a little grey snake, about the thickness of a walking stick, coiled up out of the writhing middle, and wriggled in the air towards me—and then another.

Excerpt 2, from Howard E. Koch's script for Orson Welles's radio adaptation:

PHILLIPS: Ladies and gentlemen, this is the most terrifying thing I have ever witnessed . . . Wait a minute! Someone's crawling out of the hollow top. Someone or . . . something. I can see peering out of that black hole two luminous disks . . . are they eyes? It might be a face. It might be . . .

(SHOUT OF AWE FROM THE CROWD)

PHILLIPS: Good heavens, something's wriggling out of the shadow like a gray snake. Now it's another one, and another. They look like tentacles to me.

Which statement best describes the difference between these versions?

A. The radio adaptation shares more factual information than the novel.

B. The radio adaptation shares more humorous insight than the novel.

C. The radio adaptation is more frenzied than the novel.

D. The radio adaptation is more cheerful than the novel.

Answer 1

The answer is C the radio adaptation is more frenzied than the novel

Answer 2

Answer: C. The radio adaptation is more frenzied than the novel.

Both of these excerpts describe the same event: the arrival of Martians to Earth. However, they do so in very different ways. On the one hand, the first version of War of the Worlds describes the situation in more detail. This is because the pace is much slower than that of the radio show. The dialogue is more calm, and the scene is described with less panic. On the other hand, the radio adaptation is a lot more frenzied. It describes the Martians only quickly, and it places a lot more importance on the tone and the mood.