How did the civil war influence the beginning of american realism?
a. most soldiers came from the middle and lower classes, and americans wanted to know more about them.
b. with the onset of industrial and scientific advances, americans no longer believed in the supernatural.
c. with all of the death and destruction from the war, americans wanted to escape into an ideal world.
d. despite the industrial and scientific advances, americans still believed in the supernatural.
every certified answer to this question is incorrect. since i cannot answer on any of the forums asking about this question, i will announce the answer in my question.
the correct answer choice is b. with the onset of industrial and scientific advances, americans no longer believed in the supernatural. it is not a. because wanting to know more about american soldiers has nothing to do with realism in literature according to the big picture. the answer is not c. because escaping into an ideal word would be the opposite of realism.

Read this passage from alan weisman's "the city without us": he props his running shoe against the whitish bark of a chinese amur cork tree, growing among the last of the hemlocks. "this may sound blasphemous, but maintaining biodiversity is less important than maintaining a functioning ecosystem. what matters is that soil is protected, that water gets cleaned, that trees filter the air, that a canopy regenerates new seedlings to keep nutrients from draining away into the bronx river." now read this passage from jared diamond's "the ends of the world as we know them": both the shoguns and the japanese peasants took a long-term view: the former expected to pass on their power to their children, and the latter expected to pass on their land. . today, despite having the highest human population density of any large developed country, japan is more than 70 percent forested. what common theme of green literature is most strongly evident in both passages? a. in order to thrive in coming centuries, people must find viable alternatives to fossil fuels, such as coal. b. with careful and intelligent management, ecosystems can still thrive after human beings have changed them. c. in order meet their goals, environmentalists must people develop a personal desire to protect nature. d. there is no excuse for damaging the natural world, and anyone who does so will pay a steep price.