Question

review the passage. then, select one detail that best suggests that ponyboy empathizes with soda’s loss.

soda had this buckskin horse, only it wasn’t his. it belonged to a guy who kept it at the stables where soda used to work. mickey mouse was soda’s horse, though. the first day soda saw him he said, “there’s my horse,” and i never doubted it. i was about ten then. sodapop is horsecrazy. i mean it. he’s always hanging around stables and rodeos, hopping on a horse every time he gets a chance. when i was ten i thought that mickey mouse and soda looked alike and were alike. mickey mouse was a dark - gold buckskin, sassy and ornery, not much more than a colt. he’d come when soda called him. he wouldn’t come for anyone else. that horse loved soda. he’d stand there and chew on soda’s sleeve or collar. gosh, but sodapop was crazy about that horse. he went down to see him every day. mickey mouse was a mean horse. he kicked other horses and was always getting into trouble. “i’ve got me a ornery pony,” soda’d tell him, rubbing his neck. “how come you’re so mean, mickey mouse?” mickey mouse would just chew on his sleeve and sometimes nip him. but not hard. he may have belonged to another guy,

Explanation:

To solve this, we analyze the passage for a detail showing Ponyboy's empathy for Soda's loss (though the full passage about the loss isn't shown, from the given text, the relevant detail is likely about Ponyboy's perception of Soda and the horse's connection). The key detail is: "When I was ten I thought that Mickey Mouse and Soda looked alike and were alike." This shows Ponyboy's deep understanding of Soda's bond with the horse, implying empathy as he recognizes their similarity, which would make Soda's loss (of the horse, presumably) impactful to Ponyboy as he saw how connected they were.

The detail "When I was ten I thought that Mickey Mouse and Soda looked alike and were alike" shows Ponyboy's recognition of Soda's deep bond with the horse. This understanding of their connection suggests he empathizes with Soda's potential loss (of the horse), as he perceives how integral the horse was to Soda.

Answer:

When I was ten I thought that Mickey Mouse and Soda looked alike and were alike.