Question

practice exercise 2
newsboys were shouting, \break with germany near! wilson says u - boats must stop attacks!\ but the large crowds gathered in washington, d.c., that day in 1916 did not hear. all eyes were on a block - and - tackle rig on the munsey building. it was slowly raising into the air a man in a straitjacket—head down! when he was 100 feet (about 30 meters) above the street, a signal was given. men pulled out their watches. they looked at the man. then they looked at their watches. then they looked at the man, and so on.
after two minutes and thirty seconds, the straitjacket was off. cheers went up as it fell to the ground.
the man was harry houdini. no locks or chains or jails could hold him. although many people have tried to copy his stunts, houdini still remains the king of escape.

1. the newsboys were trying to sell papers by creating a mood of

a. tension.
b. cheerfulness.
c. tragedy.
d. adventure.

1. in the first paragraph the author creates a mood of mounting

a. relief.
b. hope.
c. suspense.
d. disgust.

1. in this selection the writer uses tone to

a. create sympathy for performers.
b. impress the reader with the skill of houdini.
c. delight the reader with memories of the past.
d. show everyone the dangers of foolish action.

1. underline the sentence that shows the writer’s attitude toward houdini’s talent.

Explanation:

Question 1

Newsboys shouted about a near break with Germany and U - boat attacks, which are tense - inducing topics. Tension - creating news would attract people to buy papers. Cheerfulness (b) is not related as the news is about potential conflict. Tragedy (c) is too strong as it's just a "near" break and a call to stop attacks. Adventure (d) doesn't fit the context of war - related news. So the answer is a.

The first paragraph describes a man in a straitjacket being raised, with people watching and timing. This builds a feeling of suspense as we wait to see what happens. Relief (a) is not present as the situation is uncertain. Hope (b) is not the main mood here. Disgust (d) is not evoked by the described scene. So the answer is c.

The writer describes Houdini's stunt and says he remains the king of escape. The tone is used to impress the reader with Houdini's skill. There's no attempt to create sympathy for performers (a), the focus is on Houdini's skill not memories of the past (c), and no showing of dangers of foolish action (d). So the answer is b.

Answer:

a. tension

Question 2