I thought of that old gentleman ... who declared that it was impossible for any woman, past, present, or to come,
to have the genius of Shakespeare. He wrote to the papers
about it. He also told a lady who applied to him for
information that cats do not as a matter of fact go to
heaven though they have, he added, souls of a sort. How
much thinking those old gentlemen used to save one!
How the borders of ignorance shrank back at their
approach! Cats do not go to heaven. Women cannot write
the plays of Shakespeare.
-A Room of one's own,
Virginia Woolf
Which statement best explains how the rhetorical
device supports the central idea?
The author uses a rhetorical question to make the
old gentleman seem ridiculous.
The author uses an allusion to refer to a well-known
expert, showing that the central idea is valid.
The author reinforces the central idea by
understating the wise thoughts of the old
gentleman.
The author emphasizes the central idea by showing
the old man's foolishness through his use of
overstatement

Excerpt from “mundra” by emily t. sheets part a what is a central idea of this story? a. mundra and her mother-in-law struggle to build a relationship. b. mundra has difficulty adjusting to life after she loses her parents. c. a young woman works to do all that she can to gain acceptance from her community. d. a young woman demonstrates tremendous strength while enduring cruel treatment. part b which quotation from the story best develops the response to part a? a. “at first their death had meant little to the child for she was no longer a part of their household.” b. “at the time of mundra's wedding the people had been anxious because rain had not come and the crops were dying.” c. “"bring water," the old woman commanded fiercely and with a thrust of her foot sent the child, who had reached the door by that time, reeling in the direction of a large brass water pot which stood in a corner of the mud porch." d. “the small, dark, thin figure walked very straight because of the jar on the head, not from any sense of pride, for what had mundra to be proud of? ”