Question

select the passage that has a more melodramatic tone. oh, this journey! it was two hours cut clean out of his life, two hours in which he might have done so much, so much—written the perfect poem, for example, or read the one illuminating book. an ocean voyage is an excellent time for discussion. with no eavesdroppers around, we could loaf in our deck chairs and talk and talk. our absolute lack of facts only made the field of discussion wider.

Explanation:

The first passage uses exclamation ("Oh, this journey!") and emphasizes the lost potential ("two hours cut clean out of his life, two hours in which he might have done so much, so much - written the perfect poem...") which are more melodramatic elements. The second passage is more matter - of - fact, just stating that an ocean voyage is a good time for discussion with no eavesdroppers and a wide field of discussion due to lack of facts.

Answer:

The first passage (Oh, this journey! It was two hours cut clean out of his life, two hours in which he might have done so much, so much - written the perfect poem, for example, or read the one illuminating book.)