Read the following excerpt from The Age of Innocence to determine theme.

"To the general relief, the Countess Olenska was not present in her grandmother's drawing-room during the visit of the betrothed couple. Mrs. Mingott said she had gone out; which, on a day of such glaring sunlight, and at the "shopping hour," seemed in itself an indelicate thing for a compromised woman to do."

Which theme is supported by this excerpt?

A.) Young people in love must overcome many obstacles.
B.) Members of a society are expected to follow certain standards of behavior.
C.) Couples who do not know each other well can still have successful marriages.
D.) Visiting older relatives can be amusing and rewarding.

B.) Members of a society are expected to follow certain standards of behavior.

Explanation:

The focus of the passage is on Countess Olenska's social behavior and personal choices. It disproves of her going out for shopping at the hour of rush but is at he same time relieved that she is not around.

The condescending way in which is being called a compromised woman says that she has done something that the society does not approve of.

Her status as such allows for more scrutiny and nitpicking on her behavior.

overnment is strong when they have the ability to persuade those they govern to believe government has enough power to force them or should be forcing them to do government’s will.

when enough of the citizenry do not believe government can force them or should force them to do its bidding, government has lost or will lose its strength and power to coerce.

when enough of the citizenry do believe government can force or should force them to do its bidding, they become passive at the least or actively pro-government and repeat government’s own rhetoric to pass on what they have been persuaded by government’s propaganda.

a true majority isn’t always needed to govern or to stop government. many times all that is needed is a strong minority. if a determined 30% of the population rises up against government in a concerted effort to bring it down, this size minority usually will succeed as long as those actively opposing the minority are less in force than the minority. so if 41% of the population sits at home watching tv rooting for one side or the other, they don’t matter. it’s the active parties who make a difference.

answer: c

explanation: