After rereading the fragment with the comma splice

answer: d.she abandons people when they least expect it.

in the monk's tale, we encounter seventeen stories that relate historical events. all of these stories have tragic commonalities. they tell the stories of heroes who, despite their success in life, all met sad ends. the monk blames these sad outcomes on fortune. one of fortune's traits is that she abandons people when they least expect it. this is one of the most common themes of medieval tragedies.

the narrator closes the lantern tightly so the old man is

not awakened by the bright light

explanation:

the purpose of the heading in the passage is to identify who is telling the story.

this excerpt is part of the book sugar changed the world (2010) written by marc aronson and marina budhos. as the book has been written by two people, the heading "marc" indicates that this specific excerpt is being narrated by aronson. in the fragment, marc describes his grandfather's story after hearing it from his cousin. however, there are other excerpts where budhos is the one that tells the story of her family.

aronson and budhos, who are husband and wife in real life, decided to write sugar changed the world when they found out how sugar, which had an important role in slavery and economy, changed their ancestors' lives.