The narrator experiences a profound internal conflict and shock upon hearing the cart declare itself as "Evil," which forces them to reevaluate their feelings of sympathy. This inference is supported by the narrator's description of the cart's words as going through them "like a spear of ice," indicating a strong emotional upheaval that disrupts their previous sympathies and beliefs.
Use the passage from "The Cart" to answer the question: Given all this, you can imagine my surprise when I heard it speak or, to be more precise, when I heard what it said. Its declaration was the last thing I was expecting to hear. Its words went through me like a spear of ice and forced me to reconsider the whole situation, beginning with the sympathy I felt for the cart, then the sympathy I felt for myself, and more generally my sympathy for miracles. I wasn’t surprised by the fact of it speaking; I had been expecting that. Perhaps I felt that our relationship had matured to the point where linguistic signs were appropriate. I knew that the moment had come for it to say something to me (for example that it admired me and loved me and was on my side). I bent down next to it, pretending to tie my shoelaces, so that I could put my ear to the wire mesh on its side, and then I was able to hear its voice, a whisper from the underside of the world, and yet the words were perfectly clear and distinct: “I am Evil.” Question Use the passage to answer the question. In 1–2 sentences, explain an inference about the narrator’s state of mind that is supported by the details in the passage, and provide at least one piece of strong evidence to support your inference.
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