Question

question 2 of 5
passage 1
the youngest child
my aunt alice grew up as the youngest of eight kids. like many youngest siblings, she claimed her voice was always drowned out by her older siblings. close in age, the kids grew up as a close - knit unit near a military base in honolulu, hawaii. when my grandmother took them to the commissary to have lunch with their father, alice struggled to make herself heard over everyone else. her comments about cold food or a lost guide went unnoted—until the day she decided to take matters into her own hands.
aunt alice says she was around seven when “the incident” occurred. the commissary was packed, and, as usual, one of the bigger kids decided where they’d sit. they started discussing weekend plans, but the discussion quickly turned into an outright yelling match. some older kids wanted to go to a north - side beach, while some of the middle
suppose the writer’s goal had been to write an essay focusing on how younger siblings struggle to assert themselves. would this essay fulfill that goal?
a yes, because the essay describes how a younger sibling was neglected and had to take drastic action to be heard.
b yes, because the essay focuses on how isolated younger siblings can feel when their older siblings don’t understand them.
c no, because the essay primarily focuses on the roles each sibling plays, not on ways in which younger siblings may struggle to find their voices.
d no, because the essay indicates that a younger sibling was able to get the attention she needed, but she went about it in the wrong way.

Explanation:

The essay centers on Aunt Alice, a youngest sibling whose voice was drowned out by older siblings, and she took drastic action to be heard. This directly aligns with a focus on how younger siblings struggle to assert themselves, as it describes her neglect and her effort to be heard. Option B incorrectly claims the focus is on isolation from lack of understanding, which is not the core. Options C and D are wrong because the essay does focus on the younger sibling's struggle to assert their voice, not general sibling roles or framing her action as "wrong".

Answer:

A. Yes, because the essay describes how a younger sibling was neglected and had to take drastic action to be heard.