In Susan Glaspell's "The Verge," Act I introduces a dimly lit greenhouse where Anthony tends to plants threatened by frost. The scene emphasizes atmospheric elements and Anthony's concern for the plants.
The scene does not serve the purpose of characterizing Miss Claire as a respectable boss. While the passage provides details about Anthony, the rugged man past middle life, and his interaction with Miss Claire over the phone, it does not offer sufficient information to characterize Miss Claire as a boss, let alone as a respectable one. The focus is more on the conditions of the greenhouse, the potential danger to plants, and Anthony's response. The passage does not delve into Miss Claire's qualities or role beyond her brief mention in the phone conversation. Therefore, option C, characterizing Miss Claire as a respectable boss, is not supported by the provided excerpt.
The probable question may be:
Read the following excerpt from susan glaspell's the verge. then, answer the question that follows. act i the curtain lifts on a place that is dark, save for a shaft of light from below which comes up through an open trap-door in the floor. this slants up and strikes the long leaves and the huge brilliant blossom of a strange plant whose twisted stem projects from right front. nothing is seen except this plant and its shadow. a violent wind is heard. a moment later a buzzer. it buzzes once long and three short. silence. again the buzzer. then from below—his shadow blocking the light, comes anthony, a rugged man past middle life;—he emerges from the stairway into the darkness of the room. is dimly seen taking up a phone. anthony: yes, miss claire?—i'll see. (he brings a thermometer to the stairway for light, looks sharply, then returns to the phone) it's down to forty-nine. the plants are in danger—(with great relief and approval) oh, that's fine! (hangs up the receiver) fine! (he goes back down the stairway, closing the trap-door upon himself, and the curtain is drawn upon darkness and wind. it opens a moment later on the greenhouse in the sunshine of a snowy morning. the snow piled outside is at times blown through the air. the frost has made patterns on the glass as if—as plato would have it—the patterns inherent in abstract nature and behind all life had to come out, not only in the creative heat within, but in the creative cold on the other side of the glass. and the wind makes patterns of sound around the glass house. the back wall is low; the glass roof slopes sharply up. there is an outside door, a little toward the right. from outside two steps lead down to it. at left a glass partition and a door into the inner room. one sees a little way into this room. at right there is no dividing wall save large plants and vines, a narrow aisle between shelves of plants leads off. this is not a greenhouse where plants are being displayed, nor the usual workshop for the growing of them, but a place for experimen Which of the following purposes does this scene not serve? A. It establishes the place, or setting, of the play. B. It reveals what type of employee Anthony is. C. It characterizes Miss Claire as a respectable boss. D. It paints Mr. Archer as the head of the household.