Final answer:
The author implies that the people she writes about are enduring and toughened. Textile mill workers in the early nineteenth century are best characterized as young farm women with closely monitored behavior. Various texts highlight the complexity of female characters and their resilience against societal expectations.
Step-by-step explanation:
In the excerpt from A Four-Hundred-Year-Old Woman, the author implies that the people she writes about possess the characteristic of enduring and toughened. This is suggested through the depiction of the resilience of older women, particularly in the face of societal disdain and the association with magic, which indicates a history of overcoming adversities and challenges, leading to their rugged and fortified nature.
Regarding the best characterization of textile mill workers in the early nineteenth century, option D is correct. These workers, often referred to as mill girls or factory girls, were typically young farm women. Their behavior was closely monitored as they lived in boarding houses with strict conduct codes and had to follow the rules set by the mills employing them.
The characters from various texts provide insights into the conditions and attributes of women from different time periods. With the attributes ranging from botanically knowledgeable to endurant women described in such texts, there is a theme of depth and complexity in female characterization, often contrasted with the societal norms of their time.