Question

select the passage that has a more melodramatic tone. oh, this journey! it was two hours cut clean out of his life, two hours in which he might have done so much, so much—written the perfect poem, for example, or read the one illuminating book. an ocean voyage is an excellent time for discussion. with no eavesdroppers around, we could loaf in our deck chairs and talk and talk. our absolute lack of facts only made the field of discussion wider. adapted from aldous huxley, crome yellow and charlotte perkins gilman, herland

Explanation:

The first passage uses exclamatory language ("Oh, this journey!") and hyperbole (suggesting two - hour loss could mean not writing the perfect poem or reading an illuminating book) which are typical of a melodramatic tone. The second passage is more matter - of - fact about an ocean voyage and discussion.

Answer:

The first passage: "Oh, this journey! It was two hours cut clean out of his life, two hours in which he might have done so much, so much—written the perfect poem, for example, or read the one illuminating book."