People refuse to recognize the danger of mp3 players because they simply love their mp3 players too much to give them up. the mp3 players are probably doing serious physical damage to their inner eardrums or even the brain itself, but apparently that doesn’t bother anyone. i shudder to think of what the future will be like if we continue on the path of mp3 player slavery we’re traveling. next time you’re tempted to plug in and tune out, remember my warning. either we learn to live without mp3 players, or we’re going to turn into a nation of complete zombies. is that where you want to live?

how could the author make his argument that mp3 players actually damage listeners’ ears even more persuasive?
a) by including the statistics on hearing loss in the united states
b) by mentioning his own father’s struggle with hearing loss from old age
c) by citing statistics of how live concerts often damage audience members’ hearing
d) by quoting a doctor or audiologist who has done research on mp3 players causing hearing loss

Ead the passage from "marriage is a private affair” by chinua achebe. "i shall never see her,” was the reply. from that night the father scarcely spoke to his son. he did not, however, cease hoping that he would realize how serious was the danger he was heading for. day and night he put him in his prayers. nnaemeka, for his own part, was very deeply affected by his father’s grief. but he kept hoping that it would pass away. if it had occurred to him that never in the history of his people had a man married a woman who spoke a different tongue, he might have been less optimistic. "it has never been heard,” was the verdict of an old man speaking a few weeks later. in that short sentence he spoke for all of his people. this man had come with others to commiserate with okeke when news went round about his son’s behaviour. by that time the son had gone back to lagos. "it has never been heard,” said the old man again with a sad shake of his head. "what did our lord say? ” asked another gentleman. "sons shall rise against their fathers; it is there in the holy book.” "it is the beginning of the end,” said another. how does this passage reinforce the traditional social hierarchy? the older men in the village tell okeke that he should respect nnaemeka’s decision. the older men in the village console nnaemeka about okeke’s attitude toward his choices. the older men in the village commiserate with okeke regarding nnaemeka’s decision to disobey him. the older men in the village think that nnaemeka should be optimistic that okeke will accept his decision.

Which phrase best describes the role of irony in a written book? a. to validate readers’ beliefs b. to defy readers’ expectations c. to represent an idea d. to dramatize events apex

Read the passage below and answer the question that follows. ‘you make me feel uncivilized, daisy,’ i confessed on my second glass of corky but rather impressive claret. ‘can’t you talk about crops or something? ’ i meant nothing in particular by this remark but it was taken up in an unexpected way. ‘civilization’s going to pieces,’ broke out tom violently. ‘i’ve gotten to be a terrible pessimist about things. have you read ‘the rise of the coloured empires’ by this man goddard? ’ ‘why, no,’ i answered, rather surprised by his tone. ‘well, it’s a fine book, and everybody ought to read it. the idea is if we don’t look out the white race will be—will be utterly submerged. it’s all scientific stuff; it’s been proved.’ in this passage, tom’s ideas about race relations come off as uncivilized. what literary device is fitzgerald using here?