What is the reason for asking a rhetorical question? A. to gain or confirm information
B. to make a point or introduce a claim
C. to see if an opponent knows the answer
D. to ask for someone else's opinion or ideas

I'd say your answer is most likely option B: to gain or confirm info.

Explanation: A rhetorical question is asking a question that you already know the answer to. Sometimes even to be sarcastic.

the sentence does not violate the phrase structure second rule (introduced by noam chomsky) because noun phrases consist of a determiner such as a, the or every, and a noun. in the sentence, the noun phrase the cake includes a determiner (the) and a noun (cake).

on the other hand, the first rule indicates that a sentence encloses a noun phrase, followed by a verb phrase. the example sentence can be analysed as follows:

john (n) + ate (v) + the (det) + cake (n).

explanation:

dear evan hansen is a stage musical with music and lyrics by benj pasek and justin paul, and book by steven levenson.

the musical opened on broadway at the music box theatre in december 2016, after its world premiere at the arena stage in washington, d.c., in july 2015 and an off-broadway production at second stage theatre from march to may 2016.

at the 71st tony awards, it was nominated for nine awards, winning six, including best musical, best score, best actor in a musical for ben platt, and best featured actress in a musical for rachel bay jones.