Question

she had the quickest fancy, a gift like her brothers, for the tune of words. like him, she had a taste for the theatre. she stood at the stage door; she wanted to act, she said. men laughed in her face. the manager—a fat, loose - lipped man—guffawed. he bellowed something about poodles dancing and women acting—no woman, he said, could possibly be an actress. he hinted—you can imagine what. she could get no training in her craft. could she even seek her dinner in a tavern or roam the streets at midnight? yet her genius was for fiction and lusted to feed abundantly upon the lives of men and women.
—a room of ones own,
virginia woolf
how does the rhetorical question develop the central idea?
○ the question is used to make the point that inequality experienced by women extended beyond the theatre.
○ the question is used to emphasize the girl’s innocence by reminding readers that she is too young to engage in social activities at night.
○ the question is used to make readers question why women were not allowed to participate in theatrical productions.
○ the question is used to create a metaphor that makes a direct comparison between male and female actors.

Explanation:

The passage shows a woman facing rejection in acting (theatre) and the rhetorical question "Could she even seek her dinner in a tavern or roam the streets at midnight?" extends the idea of women's inequality beyond just the theatre. The first option matches this by stating the question makes the point that women's inequality extended beyond the theatre. The second option is incorrect as the question isn't about her innocence or age. The third option is narrow (only about theatrical participation) while the question is about broader inequality. The fourth option is incorrect as the question isn't a metaphor comparing male and female actors.

Answer:

The question is used to make the point that inequality experienced by women extended beyond the theatre.