Question

Read the passage from Hans Christian Andersen’s "The Princess and the Pea."Once upon a time there was a prince who wanted to marry a princess; but she would have to be a real princess. He travelled all over the world to find one, but nowhere could he get what he wanted. There were princesses enough, but it was difficult to find out whether they were real ones. There was always something about them that was not as it should be. So he came home again and was sad, for he would have liked very much to have a real princess.One evening a terrible storm came on; there was thunder and lightning, and the rain poured down in torrents. Suddenly a knocking was heard at the city gate, and the old king went to open it.It was a princess standing out there in front of the gate. But, good gracious! What a sight the rain and the wind had made her look. The water ran down from her hair and clothes; it ran down into the toes of her shoes and out again at the heels. And yet she said that she was a real princess."Well, we’ll soon find that out," thought the old queen. But she said nothing, went into the bed-room, took all the bedding off the bedstead, and laid a pea on the bottom; then she took twenty mattresses and laid them on the pea, and then twenty eider-down beds on top of the mattresses.Which quotation from the passage best supports the theme that looks can be deceiving?

Answer 1

This question has the passage, but not the options with the specific quotations. I've found them online. They are the following:

Which quotation from the passage best supports the theme that looks can be deceiving?

A. "Once upon a time there was a prince who wanted to marry a princess; but she would have to be a real princess."

B. "There were princesses enough, but it was difficult to find out whether they were real ones. . . . So he came home again and was sad."

C. "One evening a terrible storm came on; there was thunder and lightning, and the rain poured down in torrents."

D. "The water ran down from her hair and clothes; it ran down into the toes of her shoes and out again at the heels."

Answer:

The quotation that best supports the theme that looks can be deceiving is:

D. "The water ran down from her hair and clothes; it ran down into the toes of her shoes and out again at the heels."

Explanation:

The princess who showed up at the prince's door does not look like a princess at all. The stereotypical image of a princess is pristine, flawless. This one is soaking wet, her hair and clothes most likely unkempt and dirty. However, this look is quite deceiving. Even though she does not look like one, she is indeed a real princess. That is what the queen finds out after having her sleep on top of twenty mattresses and twenty eider-beds. Princesses are sensitive, and this one is so much so that she was able to feel the lump of a pea that was under all those mattresses and eider-beds.