Punctuating Restrictive and Nonrestrictive Elements — Unit test
Question 5 • GA-Literature and Composition I
Read the excerpt from "Lather and Nothing Else."And so, which will it be? Murderer or hero? My fate hangs on the edge of this razor blade. I can turn my wrist slightly, put a bit more pressure on the blade, let it sink in. The skin will yield like silk, like rubber, like the strop. There is nothing more tender than a man’s skin, and the blood is always there, ready to burst forth. A razor like this cannot fail. It is the best one I have.But I don’t want to be a murderer. No, sir. You came in to be shaved. And I do my work honorably. I don’t want to stain my hands with blood. Just with lather, and nothing else.
Answer
A
The customer is arguing with the barber about becoming a murderer against his will.
B
The customer is arguing with the barber about his violent activities in the barbershop.
C
The barber must choose between using a sharp razor or a rubber strop to stop his enemy.
D
The barber must choose between hurting an enemy or being an ethical worker.
Explanation
The barber imagines that he could kill the customer with the razor, but he decides, “I don’t want to be a murderer.” He also wants to do his work honorably and leave only lather, not blood. This shows his conflict between hurting his enemy and remaining an ethical barber, so the correct choice is “The barber must choose between hurting an enemy or being an ethical worker.”
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