Question

what conflict is best revealed in this passage from helen kellers the story of my life?

have you ever been at sea in a dense fog, when it seemed as if a tangible white darkness shut you in, and the great ship, tense and anxious, groped her way toward the shore with plummet and sounding - line, and you waited with beating heart for something to happen? i was like that ship before my education began, only i was without compass or sounding - line, and had no way of knowing how near the harbour was. \light! give me light!\ was the wordless cry of my soul, and the light of love shone on me in that very hour.

a. helens fear that she will never be able to communicate with her teacher

b. helens frustration with the challenges of learning to communicate

c. helens anger at not being able to communicate with her teacher

d. helens grief that she no longer had the ability to communicate

Explanation:

• Option A: The passage doesn't focus on fear of communicating with the teacher, but on Helen's state before education, so A is incorrect.
• Option B: The analogy of the ship in fog (without compass/sounding - line) shows Helen's struggle (frustration) with the challenges of learning to communicate (needing "light" which represents education/communication means) before her education began, this matches.
• Option C: The passage has no indication of anger towards not communicating with the teacher, so C is wrong.
• Option D: There's no grief about losing communication ability; it's about the struggle to gain it, so D is incorrect.

Answer:

B. Helen's frustration with the challenges of learning to communicate