The main reason for including the anecdote is D. Stepanek helped others deal with physical challenges.
<h3>What is an anecdote?</h3>
It should be noted that an anecdote simply means a short or amusing story about an individual or incident.
In this case, the the author's main reason for including the anecdote about Mattie Stepanek is that Stepanek helped others deal with physical challenges. This was vital to the plot in the story.
At the end of Sophocles' Oedipus Rex, the protagonist Oedipus has gouged out his own eyes and is sent into exile. His wife (and -- spoiler alert -- his mother) is dead, having hung herself.
