Final answer:
Ethan recognized he was cheating on the group project through a profound moment of self-reflection and moral confrontation, as he grappled with the idea of theft and its ethical implications.
Step-by-step explanation:
Ethan realized he was cheating on the group project through a moment of self-reflection. The passages provided suggest that various characters faced realizations about their actions, which were morally or ethically troubling. For Ethan, understanding that he had committed an act of theft was a significant moment, as indicated by a deep internal struggle with the concept of theft. This internal struggle indicates his recognition of cheating as it closely aligns with the metaphorical act of stealing credit in a group project, a form of intellectual dishonesty. Confronting his actions and facing the reality of his behavior was the pivotal moment when Ethan realized the gravity of his wrongdoing. This suggests that self-awareness and moral confrontation played key roles in Ethan's realization that he was cheating on the group project.