PSAT Critical Reading : Extrapolating from the Text in Literary Fiction Passages
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Example Question #3 : Comparing And Contrasting In Literary Fiction Passages
Passage adapted from J.M Barrie's Peter and Wendy (1911)
Mrs. Darling loved to have everything just so, and Mr. Darling had a passion for being exactly like his neighbours; so, of course, they had a nurse. As they were poor, owing to the amount of milk the children drank, this nurse was a prim Newfoundland dog, called Nana, who had belonged to no one in particular until the Darlings engaged her. She had always thought children important, however, and the Darlings had become acquainted with her in Kensington Gardens, where she spent most of her spare time peeping into perambulators, and was much hated by careless nursemaids, whom she followed to their homes and complained of to their mistresses. She proved to be quite a treasure of a nurse. How thorough she was at bath-time, and up at any moment of the night if one of her charges made the slightest cry. Of course her kennel was in the nursery. She had a genius for knowing when a cough is a thing to have no patience with and when it needs stocking around your throat. She believed to her last day in old-fashioned remedies like rhubarb leaf, and made sounds of contempt over all this new-fangled talk about germs, and so on. It was a lesson in propriety to see her escorting the children to school, walking sedately by their side when they were well behaved, and butting them back into line if they strayed. On John's footer [in England soccer was called football, "footer for short] days she never once forgot his sweater, and she usually carried an umbrella in her mouth in case of rain. There is a room in the basement of Miss Fulsom's school where the nurses wait. They sat on forms, while Nana lay on the floor, but that was the only difference. They affected to ignore her as of an inferior social status to themselves, and she despised their light talk. She resented visits to the nursery from Mrs. Darling's friends, but if they did come she first whipped off Michael's pinafore and put him into the one with blue braiding, and smoothed out Wendy and made a dash at John's hair.
Nana is compared to other nurses in this paragraph in order to __________.
emphasize that there were certain duties Nana cannot complete
describe how impoverished the Darlings are compared to other families in their neighborhood
make clear that, although she is a dog, Nana is an excellent nurse
describe the inadequacies of all nurses
make clear that, although she is a dog, Nana is an excellent nurse
There are several examples of Nana's superior abilities as a nurse for the Darling children. She would complain to mothers if other nurses weren't doing their jobs properly. Nana knows all the remedies for illness. She made sure the children behaved themselves. These examples prove that Nana is not only capable, but superior to other nurses.
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