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.
adapted from aldous huxley, crome yellow and charlotte perkins gilman, herland

Explanation:

Melodramatic tone involves exaggerated emotions. The first passage uses exclamation ("Oh, this journey!"), repetition ("so much, so much"), and hyperbole (two hours "cut clean out of his life" when he could have done great things like write a perfect poem) to create a more intense, exaggerated emotional tone. The second passage is more matter - of - fact, describing an ocean voyage as a good time for discussion with a calm, less - exaggerated description.

Answer:

The first passage ("Oh, this journey! It was two hours cut clean out of his life...") has a more melodramatic tone.