reading a story

Question

Challenges for Space Exploration

by Ann Leckie

Click here to read Challenges for Space Exploration.

Question

Read the sentence from paragraph 2. 

“What’s up there? Could we go there? Maybe we could go there?” 

What is the effect of the repetition of the word there in this sentence?

Responses

1. It explains how big space is. 
2. It explains how big space is. 
3. It suggests space isn’t special.
4. It suggests space isn’t special.
5. It highlights what we don’t know about space.
6. It highlights what we don’t know about space.
7. It emphasizes the idea of going to space.
8. 
   

Answer 1

Hello Eloa, I will be happy to help you with this question. Repetition is a literary device that an author utilizes to emphasize an idea, word, phrase, etc. to make their writing more impactful to their reader. This device helps the author get their message to their reader through means of persuasion as well as to make an impact. In Ann Leckie's "Challenges for Space Exploration" she ponders whether going to outer space is worth it or risky. Through weighing on the pros and cons, she ends on a final note that she hopes that humanity does not stay on Earth forever. Going back to your question, the sentences "What's up there? Could we go there? Maybe we could go there?" has the word "there" repeated. Let's look over the possible answer choices of the effect of the word "there" repeated:

It explains how big space is.

There is no evidence in the text that Leckie was explaining the vastness of space.

It suggests space isn't special.

Can you find evidence that Leckie does not view space as special? What is the purpose of this text? How does the final line of the text reveal how she views space?

It highlighlights what we don't know about space.

There is no evidence that Leckie informs the reader that there are things we don't know about space.

It emphasizes the idea of going to space.

In the first paragraph, she refers to how our ancestors built boats and traveled to islands that no one knew existed and asks why our ancestors went on voyages. In the second paragraph where the sentence is located, she transitions from humanity's curiosity in sailing to unknown islands to venturing out into space. In the repetition of "there," would you say that she was trying to emphasize something? What is the main idea of the passage and how does the author's message relate to this sentence? Would you say that the effect of this repetition is meant to convey to the reader her message of going into space?

A reading comprehension strategy that can help you includes reading the question(s) first before reading the passage so you have an idea of what information to look for in the text. Go through the answer choices and try to find evidence for each answer choice to choose the best answer.

Answer 2

The repetition of 'there' in the sentences is meant to keep the reader focused on the idea of going to space and how important that is. This question would not have been as impactful if the author used the word 'space'. When the reader reads 'there' he or she becomes actively involved. When they read 'there' , they have to use brainpower to understand that 'there' means 'space. Using the word 'there' and its repletion is quite effective!