Question 3·Hard·Text Structure and Purpose
The passage below is from the fictional memoir Voyage to the Last Meridian (1878). Harriet, an amateur naturalist, recounts her first day aboard an expedition ship bound for the South Pacific.
I rose long before dawn, unable to sleep for the racket of the winches and the peculiar antic excitement that attends a life abruptly untethered from the familiar. Standing at the rail, I watched the harbor lights shrink to pinpricks, then vanish altogether; only a faint gray margin separated sea from sky. The crew moved about with practiced haste, reefing canvas and checking provisions, while the scientists, myself included, shuffled half-awake on the quarterdeck, clutching notebooks like children on their first day of school.
Captain Weaver, noticing our unease, offered a brisk lecture on shipboard order—latitude readings at noon, plankton tows at dusk, and so on—then dismissed us to breakfast. Yet before he turned away, he rested a hand on my shoulder and, in a voice too low for the others to hear, warned that the ocean "never reveals her character all at once; she withholds it, trial by trial, from the impatient."
That single sentence made the meal taste of salt and omen; I realized the voyage would test more than my capacity to classify specimens. It would assay the sturdiness of my own convictions, those comfortable hypotheses I had carried aboard like excess luggage.
Which choice best describes the primary function of the underlined sentence (the captain’s private remark) within the passage?
For “function of a sentence” questions, always read a bit before and after the targeted line to see what changes because of it: Does it introduce a new idea, shift the mood, explain something, or hint at the future? Summarize in your own words what that sentence does for the narrator or plot, then eliminate choices that (1) describe actions or feelings that appear elsewhere, not in that line, or (2) introduce ideas that the passage never mentions. Prefer the choice that matches both the content and the emotional effect the sentence has in context.
Hints
Look at how the captain’s tone changes
Compare the captain’s brisk, public lecture on shipboard order with the private, quiet remark he makes to Harriet. What kind of feeling or mood does that private remark create?
Pay attention to what Harriet realizes afterward
Right after the quote, Harriet explains how that sentence affected her. What does she now think the voyage will test, besides her ability to classify specimens?
Think about the role this line plays in the story
Ask yourself: Is this sentence mainly describing routine tasks, explaining a physical sensation, comparing two viewpoints, or hinting at what the future of the voyage will be like?
Step-by-step Explanation
Zoom in on the underlined sentence itself
Read the captain’s remark carefully: the ocean “never reveals her character all at once; she withholds it, trial by trial, from the impatient.” This is a metaphorical warning that the sea will only show its true nature gradually and through a series of “trials” or tests, especially for people who are impatient.
Use the sentences right after it to see its effect
Right after the quote, Harriet says the sentence “made the meal taste of salt and omen” and that she realized the voyage would test “the sturdiness of my own convictions, those comfortable hypotheses I had carried aboard like excess luggage.” This shows that his remark changes how she views the voyage: she now expects trials that will challenge her beliefs and scientific assumptions, not just routine specimen collecting.
Match that function against the answer choices
Now compare this role to the options:
- It is not explaining crew tasks or monitoring (those were covered in his public “lecture on shipboard order,” not the private warning).
- It is not about her feeling physically sick; her reaction is emotional and ominous (“salt and omen”) and about testing her convictions.
- It also doesn’t mainly contrast two clearly described viewpoints; instead, his warning prompts her new realization.
The only choice that fits the idea that his warning predicts coming tests that will shake her scientific self-confidence is: “It foreshadows a series of unforeseen difficulties that will undermine Harriet’s scientific confidence.”