Question

the following text is excerpted from the red badge of courage, an 1895 novel by stephen crane. in the text, a young civil war soldier named henry reflects in the aftermath of fighting a battle. the procession of weary soldiers became a bedraggled train, despondent and muttering, marching with churning effort in a trough of liquid brown mud under a low, wretched sky. yet the youth smiled, for he saw that the world was a world for him, though many discovered it to be made of curses and walking - sticks. he had rid himself of the red sickness of battle. the sultry nightmare was in the past. he had been an animal blistered and sweating in the heat and pain of war. he turned now with great thirst to images of tranquil skies, fresh meadows, cool brooks - an existence of soft and eternal peace. which choice best describes the function of the underlined sentence in the text as a whole? choose 1 answer: a it contrasts henrys emotional state with that of the other soldiers. b it highlights the physical and emotional toll that the war has taken on the soldiers. c it presents a shift in henrys perception of the natural world. d it emphasizes henrys sense of exhaustion in the aftermath of the battle.

Explanation:

The text first describes other soldiers as "weary", "bedraggled", "despondent" while Henry is "smiling". The under - lined sentence shows Henry's positive state in contrast to the negative state of other soldiers.

Answer:

A. It contrasts Henry's emotional state with that of the other soldiers.