Well, the first example that I can think is when Rainsford is standing on the deck of the yacht at night and he hears a gunshot. Trying to get a clearer look, Rainsford loses his balance and falls into the water. Rainsford doesn't try to swim back to the yacht (which is smart, as it would have been futile). The narrator states that "a certain coolheadedness had come to him; it was not the first time he had been in a tight place". Because he was able to stay calm, he was able to swim to Ship Trap Island.
Later on, after General Zaroff had released Rainsford into the jungle, Rainsford kept telling himself repeatably "I must keep my nerve, I must keep my nerve". One final example is how Rainsford is able to keep calm during the hunt and think of ways to trick Zaroff. "An idea that held a wild chance came to him, and, tightening his belt, he headed away from the swamp".
Where are the selections?
I would suppose it is just a personal preference of his.
A. The speaker is saying that she and her peers should be allowed to handle the punishments for people like Hester Prynne. She thinks this because they would band together as a group and be all on the same page in their punishment, rather than leaving it up to the magistrate--whose punishment she does not think adequately fit the crime Hester committed.
Answer:
B. Moctezuma demanded tributes and victimized his people.
Explanation:
From the passage, we discover that his people resented to his demands for tribute and victims of the religious sacrifices. Such resentment from his people weakened his conquest.
When any people are against their rulers, it is difficult for such ruler to enjoy freedom and exercise his authority. I believe this played out when the people began resenting Moctezuma.
He demanded tributes and victimized the people but that worked against him and made him a prisoner in his own palace.
