knowing what time it was as one traveled across the vast north american continent before 1883 was more art…

knowing what time it was as one traveled across the vast north american continent before 1883 was more art than science. most towns had their own local time, generally based on the suns position at its zenith, which wreaked havoc on the railroad industry. imagine having to plan shipping and transportation across thousands of miles of tracks spanning an entire continent. now imagine doing this when no one could even agree on what time it was! the powerful railroad companies solved this conundrum by dividing the continent into four different time zones, creating the universal time - keeping system in use today. what technique often used in fiction helps the reader better understand the need for uniform time zones? 1 alluding to the railroads as if they were protagonists in an adventure 2 employing imagery to establish the setting before describing the conflict 3 asking the reader to put him or herself in the situation of a character
Answer
Brief Explanations:
The text asks the reader to "imagine" the difficulties of shipping and transportation when time - keeping was inconsistent. This is a way of asking the reader to put themselves in the situation of those involved in the railroad industry. Imagery (option 2) focuses more on descriptive language to create mental pictures, and alluding to railroads as protagonists (option 1) is not relevant here. Asking the reader to step into a character's situation helps them understand the need for uniform time zones.
Answer:
- asking the reader to put him or herself in the situation of a character