The ship had been at sea for three weeks longer than promised. ... The crew was extremely low on rations and furious with their captain for lying. ... Yes, the captain should be worried about a mutiny ... from the lack of rations, but the crew has caught their captain lying, ruining their trust and respect for him
what are you trying to figure out? provide more info and we can answer
Themselves
This reflexive pronoun is the best fit because it needs to agree with the antecedent--in this case "scholars". Because scholars is plural, the pronoun also needs to be plural. Themselves is a plural reflexive pronoun, so it will properly complete the sentence.
The correct answer should be b. gets the audience's attention
This is called a hook. The other mentioned aspects are analyzed later in the essay.