Question

the lady, or the tiger?
by frank r stockton
when all the people had assembled in the galleries, and the king,
surrounded by his court, sat high up on his throne of royal state on one
side of the arena, he gave a signal, a door beneath him opened, and
the accused subject stepped out into the amphitheater directly
opposite him, on the other side of the inclosed space, were two doors,
exactly alike and side by side it was the duty and the privilege of the
person on trial to walk directly to these doors and open one of them he
could open either door he pleased, he was subject to no guidance or
influence but that of the aforementioned impartial and incorruptible
chance if he opened the one, there came out of it a hungry tiger, the
fiercest and most cruel that could be procured, which immediately
sprang upon him and tore him to pieces as a punishment for his guilt
the moment that the case of the criminal was thus decided, doleful iron
bells were clanged, great wails went up from the hired mourners posted
on the outer rim of the arena, and the vast audience, with bowed heads
and downcast hearts, wended slowly their homeward way, mourning
greatly that one so young and fair, or so old and respected, should have
meted so dire a fate
but, if the accused person opened the other door, there came forth from
it a lady, the most suitable to his years and station that his majesty
could select among his fair subjects, and to this lady he was
immediately married, as a reward of his innocence it mattered not that
he might already possess a wife and family, or that his affections might
be engaged upon an object of his own selection, the king allowed no
such subordinate arrangements to interfere with his great scheme of
retribution and reward the exercises, as in the other instance, took
place immediately, and in the arena another door opened beneath the
king, and a priest, followed by a band of choristers, and dancing
maidens blowing joyous airs on golden horns and treading an
elaborate measure, advanced to where the pair stood, side by side,
and the wedding was promptly and cheerily solemnized then the gay
question
how does the author simultaneously develop the themes of
power and justice in the passage?
(1 point)
by using sensory language to capture the emotional
experience of the individuals on trial
by examining the role of the spectators to underscore the
unusual practices in the kingdom
by emphasizing the absolute nature of the kings authority to
punish and reward his subjects
by contrasting the terrifying nature of the tiger with the beauty
of the lady through visual imagery

Explanation:

The king's system of justice (choosing between tiger and lady) is entirely based on his authority. There's no due - process or legal - like justice. His power is absolute as he decides the “reward” (marriage to a lady) and “punishment” (tiger attack) without any external checks. This shows how power (his absolute rule) and a perverted form of justice (his arbitrary system) are developed.

Answer:

C. by emphasizing the absolute nature of the king’s authority to punish and reward his subjects