Question

Excerpt adapted from

The Count of Monte Cristo
by Alexander Dumas
The dock was soon covered with the usual crowd
of curious onlookers, as the arrival of a ship is
always a great event in the town of Marseilles. This
was especially true when, like the Pharaon, it has
been built in the city and belongs to a local
shipowner.
Meanwhile the vessel was approaching the harbor.
but so slowly and with such an air of melancholy
that the onlookers, sensing misfortune, began to
wonder if an accident happened on board.
However, the experienced seamen among them
saw that if there had been an accident, it could not
have happened to the ship herself, for she had
every appearance of being under perfect control.
Standing beside the pilot, who was preparing to
steer the ship through the narrow harbor, was a
young man. With vigilant eyes and rapid gestures,
he watched every movement of the ship and
repeated each of the pilot's orders.
The vague anxiety hovering over the crowd
affected one man so much that he could not wait
until the ship entered the harbor. This man leaped
into a small boat and ordered the boatman to row
him out to meet the Pharaon.
4
Select the correct texts in the passage.
Which two phrases convey unease in the excerpt?
excerpt adapted from The Count of Monte Cristo
by Alexander Dumas
The dock was soon covered with the usual crowd of curious onlookers, as the arrival of a ship is
always a great event in the town of Marseilles. This was especially true when, like the Pharaon, it
has been built in the city and belongs to a local shipowner.
Meanwhile the vessel was approaching the harbor, but so slowly and with such an air of melancholy
that the onlookers, sensing misfortune, began to wonder if an accident happened on board.
However, the experienced seamen among them saw that if there had been an accident, it could not
have happened to the ship herself, for she had every appearance of being under perfect control.
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Answer 1

Two phrases that convey unease in the excerpt are an air of melancholy and sensing misfortune.

What are the phrases?

The first phrase is "so slowly and with such an air of melancholy that the onlookers, sensing misfortune, began to wonder if an accident happened on board." (Line 3-4).

This phrase directly describes the onlookers' feeling a sense of unease and misfortune due to the ship's slow and melancholic approach. It uses strong verbs like "sensing" and "wondering" to convey their apprehension.

The second phrase suggests a specific individual's heightened anxiety, so much so that he takes immediate action to meet the ship before it even docks.