Which central idea should be included in a paraphrase of this excerpt?

Which central idea should be included in a paraphrase of this excerpt?

A. The forces sent by Cicones to fight Odysseus and his men arrived during the early morning hours.

B. Odysseus and his men feasted on the animals they slaughtered while on the island of Cicones.

C. The forces sent by Cicones to stop the plundering of Odysseus and his men were skilled and powerful.

D. Odysseus views the forces sent by Cicones as punishment from the Greek god Zeus.

Answer: C. The forces sent by Cicones to stop the plundering of Odysseus and his men were skilled and powerful.

This option is the most reflective of the idea that needs to be remained when paraphrasing the excerpt. While paraphrasing or synthesizing a particular text, it becomes very important to assess and then forward the basic idea or details. Here, the stress seems to be the strength which the Cicones brought against Odysseus’ camp and his men.

The nature strength and skill of these forces are probably relevant to that story since Odyssean and his men seem to face them as foes. This information can be viewed as the background to the conflicts and the given information denotes the conditions that are followed by other events in the plot. For instance, the restate might touch on the fact that Cicones gathered a massive and seasoned force to counter the invaders, portraying the complexity of the task that awaits Odysseus.

The other choices, even though they may qualify as elements that are present in the text, do not appear to be as significant as the main concepts. It is probably important to adjust option A which presents the time of day when the forces arrived at an unimportant feature. This makes option B less fitting although it may be mentioned that Odysseus’ men feasted. The elements mentioned in option A can be more appropriately supported as the focus of this excerpt is more on Penelope and her reaction. Among the presented options, Option D, the forces viewed by Odysseus as a punishment from Zeus, can be considered more like an interpretation rather than the key idea of the story that was directly underlined by the author. Thus, only the choice of option C referring to the concentration on the skill and the power of the Cicones’ forces can be considered as content-wise relevant and informative for the paraphrasing of this excerpt.