Question

In which passage is it clearest that the author is using diction to achieve some kind of effect?

A. The boy walked slowly through the graveyard, scared of every small sound, wishing he was at home in his bed.
B. The mother tucked the blanket around her sleepy child and walked quietly out the door.
C. The dog barked as the mail carrier walked up the stairs and knocked on the front door.
D. The tiny fish flitted furiously around the glass bowl, desperately wanting to escape the glaring eyes of the house cat.

Answer 1

The answer is indeed letter D. The tiny fish flitted furiously around the glass bowl, desperately wanting to escape the glaring eyes of the house cat.

Step-by-step explanation:

Diction is an author's choice of words. According to the words they choose, authors can establish their writing style, convey a certain message, provoke an emotional reaction in readers, and establish a tone and a mood. When we read the sentences in options A, B, and C, we get to know that a boy is scared, that a child is asleep and the mother is walking quietly, and that a dog is barking at a mailman. We do get some essential information, but nothing more than that.

However, as we read letter D, we are given details that allow us to feel something. We know that the fish is "little" and, therefore, defenseless. It isn't merely swimming, it is flitting furiously because it is desperate, fearing the cat outside the bowl. The cat is not just looking at the fish, it is staring at it with glaring eyes. As we can see, the author's choice of words (flitted furiously, desperately, escape, glaring eyes) has a more powerful effect over readers. We are able to empathize with the character when we know in detail what that character feels.

Answer 2

Answer: D. The tiny fish flitted furiously around the glass bowl, desperately wanting to escape the glaring eyes of the house cat.

Diction refers to an author's purposeful use of words. It describes an author's choice of words in order to convey a particular message or feeling to the reader. Out of these options, the one that better displays diction is D. The author uses words such as "furiously" and "glaring" in order to make the setting and the characters more vivid.