Question

Read paragraphs 4-5 from the passage.

(4) Springing to my feet I received my first Martian surprise, for the effort, which on Earth would have brought me standing upright, carried me into the Martian
air to the height of about three yards. I alighted softly upon the ground, however, without appreciable shock or jar. Now commenced a series of evolutions
which even then seemed ludicrous in the extreme. I found that I must learn to walk all over again, as the muscular exertion which carried me easily and safely
upon Earth played strange antics with me upon Mars.
(5) Instead of progressing in a sane and dignified manner, my attempts to walk resulted in a variety of hops which took me clear of the ground a couple of feet
at each step and landed me sprawling upon my face or back at the end of each second or third hop. My muscles, perfectly attuned and accustomed to the
force of gravity on Earth, played the mischief with me in attempting for the first time to cope with the lesser gravitation and lower air pressure on Mars.
How do the underlined words help establish a sense of place and circumstance?
A. They suggest that the narrator is clumsy and careless, making him unable to explore Mars because he is unable to walk properly.
B. They demonstrate how frustrated the narrator is becoming due to his inability to stay on the ground without gravity.
C. They create vivid imagery, which reinforces that the narrator has landed somewhere that is extremely different from Earth.
D. They help establish a mood of joy and lightness as the narrator begins to enjoy the weightlessness of being on Mars.

Answer 1

Answer: C

Explanation:

I recognize this as coming from an old 1912 novel published as "A Princess of Mars", by Edgar Rice Burroughs. I read the book as a teenage boy. A 2012 movie, called "John Carter", was based on this same book.

Answer A - No, because the character (Carter) says, "My muscles, perfectly attuned and accustomed to the force of gravity on Earth". Perfectly attuned is an athlete, not a clumsy person.

Answer B - No, because the character just doesn't sound all that frustrated. The experience is strange and inconvenient, yet he is handling his emotions pretty well for how weird it must be. It is more like he is writing about an amazing experience, not just complaining.

Answer D - No, because he never says that the experience was making him happy. He does not say that he was laughing or smiling or that it reminded him of some pleasant time he had as a boy.

Answer C - Yes. - Creation of vivid imagery. In a novel, the author must paint pictures with their words. Part of how the author does this is by giving you the picture of a man who feels very comfortable with his coordination on Earth, but keeps winding up about 9 feet off the ground without trying. He doesn't just "I kept falling". He tells you in vivid detail - "... landed me sprawling on my face or back ..."

Hope this helps!