In paragraph 9, Dave is experiencing an internal conflict. This is evident as he struggles with his discomfort caused by overdressing and sweating, which is compounded by the fact that he is trying to maintain a certain appearance or impression in front of Sarah. While he is physically fine on the outside, internally he is battling feelings of anxiety and embarrassment about his situation, particularly as Sarah misinterprets his trembling as nervousness rather than a result of overheating.
Determine whether Dave is experiencing an internal or external conflict in paragraph 9
After dinner I went to a party. Even though it was winter,
I opted to hang out on the back porch as much as possible
because it was so hot inside. Being indoors was like a sauna,
but Sarah was in the basement so I headed that way. We were
talking and she noticed that I was dripping with perspiration.
“You’re trembling,” she said, touching my shoulder. She thought
I was nervous talking to her and probably thought it was cute,
but in reality I was on the verge of passing out because I was
wearing four tight T-shirts and two long-sleeves under my
wool sweater, not to mention the sweatpants tucked into my
tube socks to add heft to my (formerly chicken-legs) quads. She
squeezed my biceps.3
Internal conflict
External conflict
1 answer