Why would Filipinos have been surprised at President William McKinley's claim that the United States had to take command of the Philippines in order to Christianize them?

Because the Philippines was already a largely Christian country, being the country with the largest number of Catholics in all of Asia, even before the US interference.

Explanation:

After the Spanish-American war, President Mckinley showed an interest in attaching the Philippines to American territory, in addition to suffering some political pressure both to allow this annexation to occur quickly and to prevent it from occurring. Mckinley, however, had an interest in the annexation and claimed that it was a matter of responsibility, as the United States should Christianize the Philippines. This showed how much Americans were unaware of the Philippines, since Filipinos were already Christians, mostly Catholics.

the correct answer is:

b) a rich merchant.

the best description of postwar writers might be progressive.

following the war, writers showed a tendency to work on artistic or social matters rather than political themes. while postwar literature may not have been the greatest period of english literature, the themes provided excellent critics a high number of novels. such examples include anthony burgess, anthony powell and frank kermode, all of which can be placed under the progressive view.