Question 1:
Humorous passage 1: "It (the umbrella) was made to be carried on the arm like an enormous ornamental bat and to allow one the opportunity to put on British airs as the atmospheric conditions demanded."
Humorous passage 2: "(The umbrella is) An item to be carried in the street, to be used to startle friends and—in the worst of cases—to fend off one’s creditors."
Question 2:
Passage 1 is funny because it compares the umbrella to an ornamental bat, which sounds weird in the first place. Plus, the umbrellas is said to be used by people who want to seem British, which is even more outrageously funny.
Passage 2 is funny because it treats the umbrella as a scary object which can be used even to fend off people you owe money to, which is absurd.
In both passages, the author uses tone and voice in a very witty way: he speaks seriously about absurdity, about unimaginable stuff. It is like an encyclopedia of weird and fun facts. That is what makes it funny: the contrast between a serious tone and larger than life images.
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In my opinion, the correct answer is <span>c. were published to be read by common people. The invention of the printing press a century earlier was the driving force of literacy, which was becoming more widespread than ever. Books were cheaper and affordable to members of the growing middle class. Also, the middle-class people started dictating the literary taste, so there was no need for employing sublime styles and topics that would appeal to the educated aristocracy. In the 16th century, Giorgio Vasari wrote his "Lives of the Artists" - an easily read and extremely interesting account on lives of secular people - the major artists of the age. This book quickly became a bestseller, which means it was read by common people.</span>
Log is the object of the preposition because under is a preposition.
Explanation:
hope this helps you! have a nice a day!