Question

select the passage that has a more blissful tone.

she moped: no grown person could have performed that uncheering business better; no furrowed face of an adult, longing for home, ever bore more clearly the signs of anguish and homesickness than did her small childlike face.

it was almost too much happiness to bear. he felt stunned by the unexpected good news. a burst of tears came, and he seemed to awaken, all at once, to a full sense of the joyful change that had occurred and the almost insupportable load of anguish which had been lifted.

adapted from charlotte brontë, villette and charles dickens, oliver twist

Explanation:

To determine the passage with a more blissful tone, we analyze the mood of each:

• The first passage uses words like "moped," "uncheering," "anguish," and "homesickness," creating a sad, melancholic tone.
• The second passage uses phrases like "too much happiness to bear," "stunned by the unexpected good news," "joyful change," and "anguish... lifted," conveying extreme happiness and relief, which aligns with a blissful tone.

Answer:

The passage: "It was almost too much happiness to bear. He felt stunned by the unexpected good news. A burst of tears came, and he seemed to awaken, all at once, to a full sense of the joyful change that had occurred and the almost insupportable load of anguish which had been lifted."