Question

one dominican monk sought to perplex her by asking why, since god had willed that france should be delivered through her, she had need of armed men?
full fearlessly and sweetly she looked at him as she made answer: \it is my lord’s will that i ask for soldiers, and that the dauphin shall give me them. the men shall fight; it is god who gives the victory.\
another rough questioner amongst her judges sought to confuse her by asking what language her voices spoke. they say that a flash flew from her eyes, though her sweet voice was as gentle as ever as she made answer: \a better language than yours, my father.\
and so, through all, her courage never failed, her faith never faltered, her hope shone undimmed.
from evelyn everett - green, a heroine of france, the story of joan of arc
the previous text suggested that joan responded to the questions boldly and confidently. how does this historical novel build on or challenge that idea?
it emphasizes joan’s calm and serene behavior while being questioned.
it shows that the people questioning joan were frightened of her.
it illustrates joan’s angry and passionate responses to the questions.

Explanation:

The question is about how the historical novel (about Joan of Arc) builds on or challenges the idea that Joan responded to questions boldly and confidently. The first option emphasizes Joan's calm and serene behavior while being questioned, which relates to the idea of her bold and confident response (calmness can be part of confident behavior). The second option says people questioning were frightened of her, which doesn't directly relate to Joan's response. The third option talks about Joan's angry responses, which is the opposite of calm/confident. So the first option is correct as it supports the idea of her calm (a sign of confidence) behavior during questioning.

Answer:

It emphasizes Joan's calm and serene behavior while being questioned.