Question

That drunken poet from whom you would not take a dreary tragedy, he believed in himself. That elderly minister with an epic from whom you were hiding in a back room, he believed in himself. If you consulted your business experience instead of your ugly individualistic philosophy, you would know that believing in himself is one of the commonest signs of a rotter. Actors who can't act believe in themselves; and debtors who won't pay. It would be much truer to say that a man will certainly fail, because he believes in himself.

In this portion of the passage, the author repeats the phrase "believed in himself"/"believing in himself" several times. What effect is achieved by this detail?

A) It helps to reinforce how "believing in yourself" is a silly concept.
B) It helps to show that "believing in yourself" is a much talked about idea.
C) It lets the reader know that the author secretly agrees with "believing in yourself."
D) It makes the reader curious about where the author actually stands regarding this concept.

Answer 1

@justjm

Answer 2

Not in the mood of reading another passage :/ but just see the context of the phrase as used in each sentence and find the underlying purpose and effect of the detail.

Answer 3

C and D are eliminated because they are making false or unknown assumptions regarding the author.

Answer 4

B) It helps to show that "believing in yourself" is a much talked about idea.