from Life on the Mississippi

Question

I still keep in mind a certain wonderful sunset which I witnessed when steamboating was new to me. A broad expanse of the river was turned to blood; in the middle distance the red hue brightened into gold, through which a solitary log came floating, black and conspicuous, in one place a long, slanting mark lay sparkling upon the water; in another the surface was broken by boiling, tumbling rings, that were as many-tinted as an opal: where the ruddy flush was faintest, was a smooth spot that was covered with graceful circles and radiating lines, ever so delicately traced, the shore on our left was densely wooded, and the sombre shadow that fell from this forest was broken in one place by a long, ruffled trail that shone like silver, and high above the forest wall a clean-stemmed dead tree waved a single leafy bough that glowed like a flame in the unobstruct splendor that was flowing from the sun....

The world was new to me, and I had never seen anything like this at home. But as I have said, a day carne when I began to cease from not the glories and the charms which the moon and the sun and the twilight wrought upon the river's face, another day came when I ceased altogeth to note them. Then, if that sunset scene had been repeated, I should have looked upon it without rapture, and should have commented upon it. inwardly, after this fashion: This sun means that we are going to have wind to-morrow, that floating log means that the river is rising, small thank to it that slanting mark on the water refers to a bluff reef which is going to kill somebody's steamboat one of these nights, if it keeps on stretchi out like that those tumbling "boils" show a dissolving bar and a changing channel there; the lines and circles in the slick water over yonder are warning that the troublesome place is shoaling up dangerously....

Which statement best conveys how the author's viewpoint changes in the passage?

1. His fear of nature intensifies as he comes to accept that a river is more dangerous than it is beautiful.

2. His ability to describe the river with precise language improves as he gains more skills in steamboating

3. His way of seeing the river shifts from mysterious wonder to objective analysis as he becomes a steamboating expert.

4. His enjoyment of the river comes at first as the result of acute observations and later as the result of proven instincts.

Answer 1

The statement that best conveys how the author's viewpoint changes in the passage is:

3. His way of seeing the river shifts from mysterious wonder to objective analysis as he becomes a steamboating expert.

In the beginning, the author experiences a sense of wonder and beauty in the sunset over the river, appreciating its splendor. However, as he gains experience and becomes more knowledgeable about steamboating, his perspective shifts to a more analytical and practical approach, viewing the river's features in terms of safety and navigation rather than beauty.