Question

By autumn, what had begun as an adventurous expedition had turned into an exhausting, indecisive war of attrition in which we fought for no cause other than our own survival.
Which statement best explains the paradox in the excerpt?
A) It is odd that war should ever be viewed as an adventurous expedition.
B) It is unusual that soldiers should ever be forced to fight merely to survive.
C) It is surprising that the expedition turned out to be so exhausting and difficult.
D) It is unfortunate that the soldiers did not have the easy time they had anticipated.

Answer 1

Answer: A) It is odd that war should ever be viewed as an adventurous expedition.

This excerpt describes the experiences of a group of soldiers in the Vietnam War. The paradox in the passage, however, is the fact that the soldier describes this experience as an adventurous expedition. Besides the fact that the statement is odd, it shows the misconceptions that people have about war, and the difficulty in understanding the reality of it.