It was with difficulty that i could bring myself to admit the identity of the wan being before me with the companion of my early boyhood. what does the wording of this sentence convey to the reader? his friend seems so changed that he barely recognizes him. his friend has been cruel to him too many times. his friend is being impersonated by someone else. his friend no longer respects their history together.

The correct answer is A. His friend seems so changed that he barely recognizes him.

Explanation:

In literature and writing, the term "wording" refers to the selection of words by the author and the narrator and the way these are used to convey a specific message or point and that varies according to each author and the context in which the message appears. In the case of the excerpt presented the author or narrator is referring to another character and for doing this he uses the expression "It was with difficulty that I could bring myself to admit the identity of the wan being before me", which shows the narrator feels hesitant to admit who is character is, especially because of his physical appearance and pale skin and then the narrator adds "with the companion of my early boyhood", which means the narrator is comparing the pale man he sees with his companion or fiend when he was a kid and considering they are the same person the narrator feels he barely recognizes this person, even though he was an important friend in childhood. This means, the selection and use of words by the narrator mainly tells the reader the narrators' "friend seems so changed that he barely recognizes him".

the following what exactly?