Question

"I have heard it asserted by some, that as America has flourished under her

former connection with Great Britain, the same connection is necessary
towards her future happiness, and will always have the same effect.
Nothing can be more
fallacious than this kind of argument. We may as well
assert that because a child has thrived upon milk, that it is never to have
meat, or that the first twenty years of our lives is to become a precedent
for the next twenty. But even this is admitting more than is true; for
answer roundly that America would have flourished as much, and probably
much more, had no European power taken any notice of her. The
commerce by which she hath enriched herself are the necessaries of life,
and will always have a market while eating is the custom of Europe." What
is the author's intention in this paragraph?
A. He's indicating his claim
B. He's introducing a counterclaim
C. He's introducing evidence
D. He's showing his bias.

Answer 1

The author of this paragraph intends to refute the argument that America needed its former connection with Great Britain for its future happiness and prosperity.

Step-by-step explanation:

The author's intention in this paragraph is to refute the argument that America needed its former connection with Great Britain for its future happiness and prosperity. The author argues that this claim is fallacious and compares it to asserting that a child should never have meat after thriving on milk.

The author asserts that America would have flourished just as much, if not more, without European interference, as the commerce it engaged in was necessary and would always have a market.