Question

an uncomfortable bed by guy de maupassant (excerpt) in this short story, the narrator is invited to a lavish mansion by a group of friends who enjoy playing practical jokes. the narrator is determined to go to any lengths in order to keep his friends from playing tricks on him. 1 one autumn i went to spend the hunting season with some friends in a chateau in picardy. 2 my friends were fond of practical jokes. i do not care to know people who are not. 3 when i arrived, they gave me a princely reception, which at once awakened suspicion in my mind. they fired off rifles, embraced me, made much of me, as if they expected to have great fun at my expense. 4 i said to myself: “look out, old ferret! they have something in store for you.” 5 during the dinner the mirth¹ was excessive, exaggerated, in fact. i thought: “here are people who have more than their share of amusement, and apparently without reason. they must have planned some good joke. assuredly i am to be the victim of the joke. attention!” select the correct answer. look again at paragraphs 1 - 4 of the excerpt. which statement accurately describes the conflict that is introduced in the exposition? a. the narrator begins to feel that his friends may try to kill him. b. the narrator resents the practical jokes his friends are always making. c. the narrator becomes anxiously alert, and he thinks his friends plan to trick him. d. the narrator does not enjoy hunting, but his friends force him to go hunting with them.

Explanation:

The narrator knows his friends like practical - jokes. Their over - enthusiastic reception makes him suspicious that they are planning a trick on him. He is on high alert as indicated by his self - talk in paragraph 4.

Answer:

C. The narrator becomes anxiously alert, and he thinks his friends plan to trick him.