Question

this question has two parts. first, answer part a. then, answer part b.
part a
what is the key idea of paragraph 1?
war itself is irrational.
a taste for war is irrational.
some poets deny that war is irrational.
most people believe that war is irrational.
part b
which excerpt from paragraph 1 best supports the answer to part a?
the irrationality of war is, i suppose, admitted by almost all men: i say almost all; because i have myself met with men who attempted seriously to maintain that it is an agreeable occupation and one of the chief means of human happiness.
i must own that although i use the plural number here, i should have used the dual, had i been writing in greek...

Explanation:

Part A

To find the key idea of paragraph 1, we analyze each option:

• "War itself is irrational" focuses on war's nature, but the text implies a majority view, not a statement of war's inherent irrationality.
• "A taste for war is irrational" is about the taste, not the main idea of the paragraph.
• "Some poets deny that war is irrational" is a minor point (about a few people), not the key idea.
• "Most people believe that war is irrational" matches the excerpt "The irrationality of war is, I suppose, admitted by almost all men" (almost all = most people), so this is the key idea.

We need an excerpt that supports the key idea from Part A (most people believe war is irrational).

• The first excerpt: "The irrationality of war is, I suppose, admitted by almost all men: I say almost all; because I have myself met with men who attempted seriously to maintain that it is an agreeable occupation and one of the chief means of human happiness." This shows that almost all (most) admit war's irrationality, with a few exceptions, supporting Part A's answer.
• The second excerpt is about language (Greek dual), not related to war's irrationality or people's beliefs.

Answer:

D. Most people believe that war is irrational.

Part B