Question

select the correct text in the passage. which three parts of this excerpt from \editha\ by william dean howells denote the meaninglessness of war?
o, girls dont, women dont, when they give their men up to their country. they think theyll come marching back, somehow, just as gay as they went, or if its an empty sleeve, or even an empty pantaloon, its all the more glory, and theyre so much the prouder of them, poor things!\ the tears began to run down edithas face; she had not wept till then; but it was now such a relief to be understood that the tears came.
o, you didnt expect him to get killed,\ mrs. gearson repeated, in a voice which was startlingly like georges again. \you just expected him to kill someone else, some of those foreigners, that werent there because they had any say about it, but because they had to be there, poor wretches—conscripts, or whatever they call em. you thought it would be all right for my george, your george, to kill the sons of those miserable mothers and the husbands of those girls that you would never see the faces of.\ the woman lifted her powerful voice in a psalm - like note. \i thank my god he didnt live to do it! i thank my god they killed him first, and that he aint livin with their blood on his hands!\ she dropped her eyes which she had raised with her voice, and glared at editha.

Explanation:

To determine the parts denoting the meaninglessness of war, we analyze each option:

1. "No, girls don't, women don't, when they give their men up to their country. They think they'll come marching back, somehow, just as gay as they went, or if it's an empty sleeve, or even an empty pantaloon, it's all the more glory, and they're so much the prouder of them, poor things!" - This shows women's naive view of war, thinking it's glorious, but the "empty sleeve" or "empty pantaloon" (losses) highlight the false glory, implying meaninglessness.
2. "No, you didn't expect him to get killed," Mrs. Gearson repeated, in a voice which was startlingly like George's again. "You just expected him to kill someone else, some of those foreigners, that weren't there because they had any say about it, but because they had to be there, poor wretches - conscripts, or whatever they call 'em. You thought it would be all right for my George, your George, to kill the sons of those miserable mothers and the husbands of those girls that you would never see the faces of." - This contrasts the expectation of George killing others (foreigners, conscripts with no choice) with the reality, showing the senselessness of war as it involves killing innocent people.
3. "I thank my God he didn't live to do it! I thank my God they killed him first, and that he ain't livin' with their blood on his hands!" - This shows relief that George didn't have to kill (and be burdened with guilt) and that he was killed, emphasizing the horror and meaninglessness of war's violence.

The incorrect part (not denoting meaninglessness) is the one not selected, but the three correct parts are the ones analyzing the false glory, senseless killing of innocents, and relief from avoiding or being a victim of war's violence.

Answer:

1. "No, girls don't, women don't, when they give their men up to their country. They think they'll come marching back, somehow, just as gay as they went, or if it's an empty sleeve, or even an empty pantaloon, it's all the more glory, and they're so much the prouder of them, poor things!"
2. "No, you didn't expect him to get killed," Mrs. Gearson repeated, in a voice which was startlingly like George's again. "You just expected him to kill someone else, some of those foreigners, that weren't there because they had any say about it, but because they had to be there, poor wretches - conscripts, or whatever they call 'em. You thought it would be all right for my George, your George, to kill the sons of those miserable mothers and the husbands of those girls that you would never see the faces of."
3. "I thank my God he didn't live to do it! I thank my God they killed him first, and that he ain't livin' with their blood on his hands!"