Question

Several key human errors contributed to the spread of the Chicago fire of 1871. When the blaze first began, Bruno Goll refused to sound the first alarm, which was housed in his drugstore. Later, at the courthouse, Mathias Schaffer instructed his assistant, William J. Brown, to sound Box 342 instead of Box 319, sending firefighters toward the wrong location. When Schaffer realized his mistake, Brown flat-out refused to strike the correct box. Even after the fire, Brown was confident in his decision not to correct the mistake. Finally, as the blaze raged on, fireman John Dorsey attempted to sound a special alarm, but accidentally sounded a general alarm. This meant that additional trucks and equipment were not immediately sent out to help
Which is one essential detail to this paragraph? John Dorsey sounded a general alarm during the blaze. Schaffer’s assistant was named William J. Brown. The store that Bruno Goll owned was a drugstore. William J. Brown was confident in his decision.

Answer 1

A detail is essential in a passage if it adds to the overall idea of the passage. In this passage, the overall idea is stated in the first sentence, several key human errors contributed to the spread of the Chicago fire of 1871. That means that key details in this passage will be something related to a human error. Out of all of our choices, the first one seems the most like a human error. The second, third, and fourth choices seem more like details then like essential details. That means that the answer to the question is John Dorsey sounded a general alarm during the blaze.

Answer 2

Answer:

A detail is essential in a passage if it adds to the overall idea of the passage. In this passage, the overall idea is stated in the first sentence, several key human errors contributed to the spread of the Chicago fire of 1871. That means that key details in this passage will be something related to a human error. Out of all of our choices, the first one seems the most like a human error. The second, third, and fourth choices seem more like details then like essential details. That means that the answer to the question is John Dorsey sounded a general alarm during the blaze.