To determine the central idea of an essay on man, what should the reader do first?
o
paraphrase the author's argument
locate key details
decide the author's message
identify the topic

D). Identify the topic.

Explanation:

Topic sentences are usually employed to convey the major idea or claim of the poem. Therefore, in order to identify the topic, it becomes vital to 'recognize the topic' as then only a reader could move forward to understanding or analyzing a poem or text.

The poem "An Essay on Man" functions to define and advocate the human relations with the universe or society and justify divine workings of God and as humans we must accept them without questioning.

As per the question, while determining the central idea of the poem "An Essay on Man" the readers must 'identify the topic' as topic sentence or description is chiefly surrounded by the dominant idea of the poem. The next would be to look for the pieces of evidence that elaborate and support this topic or idea and reach a conclusion or interpretation of the poem. Thus, option D is the correct answer.

1. read the following excerpt from franklin d. roosevelt's "fireside chat 19":

on the other side of the picture, we must learn also to know that guerilla warfare against the germans in, let us say serbia or norway, us; that a successful russian offensive against the germans us; and that british successes on land or sea in any part of the world strengthen our hands.

remember always that germany and italy, regardless of any formal declaration of war, consider themselves at war with the united states at this moment just as much as they consider themselves at war with britain or russia. and germany puts all the other republics of the americas into the same category of enemies. the people of our sister republics of this hemisphere can be honored by that fact.  

the true goal we seek is far above and beyond the ugly field of battle. when we resort to force, as now we must, we are determined that this force shall be directed toward ultimate good as well as against immediate evil. we americans are not destroyers — we are builders.

analyze the effectiveness of this excerpt. how does it function within the speech as a whole? how does the structure of the excerpt to convey the speech's purpose and key points? support your argument with evidence from the speech. (10 points)