Question

EssayDrama

They had no money evidently; according to Professor Trevelyan they were married whether they liked it or not before they were out of the nursery, at fifteen or sixteen very likely.

–A Room of One’s Own,
Virginia Woolf

How do the authors use word choice and structure to support and develop the central ideas in the two passages?

Both authors use a problem–solution structure to create tension.
Both authors use repetition to emphasize the central idea.
Woolf uses a cause–effect structure, while Ibsen uses conflict through dialogue.
Woolf uses words with negative connotations, while Ibsen uses words that are mostly positive.

Answer 1

Answer: Woolf uses a cause–effect structure, while Ibsen uses conflict through dialogue.

Explanation: Woolf’s sentence links circumstances (“They had no money evidently”) to the social consequence she’s criticizing (early, often unwanted marriage), using causal phrasing and an ironic, journalist-like diction to develop a social-critique idea. By contrast, Ibsen typically advances central ideas through staged speech: short exchanges, interruptions, and confrontations that dramatize moral and interpersonal conflicts. The other options are weaker—there’s no clear problem–solution pattern in both, repetition isn’t the primary device in either excerpt, and it’s inaccurate to say Woolf’s diction is simply negative while Ibsen’s is mostly positive.