SAT OwlQuestion bank / Command of Evidence
In Agnes Morrow's 1891 novel The Glass Orchard, Eleanor Vane is admired throughout her town for her generosity. The narrator, however, suggests that Eleanor's gifts serve partly as a means of controlling the people who receive them, as when the narrator observes, ______
Which quotation from The Glass Orchard most effectively illustrates the claim?
"Eleanor gave freely to every family on Mill Street, and no winter passed without baskets of coal and bread appearing on their doorsteps."
"The townspeople spoke of Eleanor with a warmth they reserved for no one else."
"She never gave a gift without remembering it, and she never let its recipient forget that she remembered."
"Eleanor herself lived simply, and her own dresses were mended many times over."
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C
The claim is that Eleanor's gifts give her power over recipients. Choice C shows that she keeps track of every gift and makes sure recipients stay aware of their debt, which is a way of holding influence over them.
Choice A shows how generous Eleanor is, but it gives no sign that her giving is a way of controlling anyone.
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