Question

the search party’s find
by grant allen (excerpt)
in this excerpt from the beckoning hand and other stories, the narrator, a surgeon, joins an arctic expedition to escape a broken engagement. one of the expedition’s members is a man by the name of lemarchant, who quickly becomes one of the team’s most despised members. to the narrator’s horror, he learns that lemarchant is now engaged to his former love. when lemarchant learns this, he sets in motion a plan that has a terrible consequence for both men.
(1) presently, i heard a noise again, and woke up quietly, without starting, but just opened my eyes and peered about as well as the dim light of the little oil - lamp would allow me.
(2) to my great surprise, i could make out somehow that lemarchant was meddling with the bottles in the medicine - chest.
(3) at four i woke, as i always did, and proceeded to take one of my powders. curiously enough, before i tasted it, the grain appeared to me to be rather coarser and more granular than the quinine¹ i had originally put there. i took a pinch between my finger and thumb, and placed it on my tongue by way of testing it. instead of being bitter, the powder, i found, was insipid² and almost tasteless
(4) glancing accidentally to his place that moment, i was vaguely
authors use the linear structure to create and build tension in a story. match the paragraphs listed to the purpose they serve in the story.
paragraphs 3–7 paragraphs 8–12 paragraphs 13–16
paragraphs 1–2
increases the tension with the realization that the narrator has succeeded in his plan to foil lemarchant
builds tension with details about how the narrator turns the tables on lemarchant
reveals the conflict the narrator faces

Explanation:

• Paragraphs 1 - 2: The narrator hears a noise and sees Lemarchant meddling with the medicine - chest. This reveals the conflict as the narrator is likely suspicious of Lemarchant's actions (conflict between the narrator and Lemarchant).
• Paragraphs 3 - 7: Details about the narrator taking his powder and noticing it is different (coarser, less bitter). This builds tension as the narrator is figuring out how to turn the tables on Lemarchant (he realizes something is wrong with the powder, which is part of his plan against Lemarchant).
• Paragraphs 8 - 12: (Assuming in the full text, after realizing the powder issue, the narrator takes steps to foil Lemarchant. If the text in these paragraphs shows the narrator's success in his plan, then it increases the tension as the climax of the conflict (narrator vs Lemarchant) is reached).
• Paragraphs 13 - 16: (Not enough text provided, but if it is the aftermath, it would be the resolution. But based on the given prompts, if we assume the three - part structure of conflict - building - climax):

Answer:

Paragraphs 1 - 2 → reveals the conflict the narrator faces
Paragraphs 3 - 7 → builds tension with details about how the narrator turns the tables on Lemarchant
Paragraphs 8 - 12 → increases the tension with the realization that the narrator has succeeded in his plan to foil Lemarchant