Question

29
the pleasure of writing
by a. a. milne (excerpt)
the pleasure of writing is one of the essays in the book not that it
matters. it was written in the early 1900s by british author a. a. milne, who
is best known for his winnie-the-pooh stories.
(1) sometimes when the printer is waiting for an article which really should
have been sent to him the day before, i sit at my desk and wonder if there
is any possible subject in the whole world upon which i can possibly find
anything to say. on one occasion i left it to fate, which decided, by
means of a dictionary opened at random, that i should deliver myself of a
few thoughts about goldfish. (you will find this article later on in the book.)
but to-day i do not need to bother about a subject. to-day i am without a
care. nothing less has happened than that i have a new nib¹ in my pen.
(2) in the ordinary way, when shakespeare writes a tragedy, or mr. blank
gives you one of his charming little essays, a certain amount of thought
goes on before pen is put to paper. one cannot write \scene i. an open
place. thunder and lightning. enter three witches,\ or \as i look up from
my window, the nodding daffodils beckon to me to take the morning,\ one
cannot give ones best in this way on the spur of the moment. at least,
others cannot. but when i have a new nib in my pen, then i can go straight
from my breakfast to the blotting-paper, and a new sheet of foolscap fills
itself magically with a stream of blue-black words. when poets and idiots
talk of the pleasure of writing, they mean the pleasure of giving a piece of
their minds to the public; with an old nib a tedious business. they do not
mean (as i do) the pleasure of the artist in seeing beautifully shaped \ks\
and sinuous \ss\ grow beneath his steel. anybody else writing this article
might wonder \will my readers like it?\ i only tell myself \how the
compositors² will love it!\
(3) but perhaps they will not love it. maybe i am a little above their heads. i
remember on one first of january receiving an anonymous postcard
select the correct answer.
what is a central idea of this essay?
a. the author received advice to write more generously.
b. the author had a friend whose uncle manufactured nibs.
c. there is a lot to appreciate in the simple details of writing.
d. sometimes it can be hard to find inspiration when writing.
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Explanation:

Options A and B are minor, specific details not central to the essay. Option D is a passing mention in the first paragraph, but the core of the excerpt focuses on the author's joy in the small, tangible details of writing (like a new nib, the shape of letters), framing these as a key pleasure of the craft.

Answer:

C. There is a lot to appreciate in the simple details of writing.