Question

Bold was her face, and handsome; florid too...

How does the narrator’s description of the businesswoman suggest that he is an unreliable narrator?
A. He calls her "respectable" but then mentions her many "loves."
B. He reveals that he is naive when he reports that she was "five times married."
C. He doubts his ability to describe the woman accurately.
D. He implies that he is a liar when he says that she had "other loves . . . in youth."

Answer 1

The narrator might be considered unreliable because of possible contradictions and subjective language in the description of the businesswoman, which suggests bias and calls into question his objectivity.

Step-by-step explanation:

The narrator's description of the businesswoman in the passage suggests that he may be an unreliable narrator because there are hints of contradiction or subjectivity in his character evaluation. In the options provided, the descriptions signal potential unreliability not necessarily by calling her 'respectable' and then mentioning her 'loves' (A), reporting on her marriages (B), expressing doubt in his ability to describe her (C), or implying that he's a liar (D), but rather through the narrator’s judgement and the adjectives he chooses to describe the businesswoman. These descriptions could be subjective and biased, calling into question the reliability of the narrator's accounts. In examining his descriptions, one might sense undertones of judgement or inconsistency that could suggest a lack of objectivity or even a double standard in assessing male and female characters.