What role does setting play in the short story, "the gift of the magi"? select all that apply. a. it advances the plot of the story, for if it were not christmas, there would have been no gift exchange. b. it is not important at all; the story's plot and theme would have been exactly the same had it happened at any other time of year. c. the fact that it's christmas sets the stage for acts of sacrifice and selflessness, which develop the theme. d. none of the above e. all of the above

Julius caesar. [brutus.] with this, she fell distraught, and, her attendants absent, swallowed fire. cassius. and died so? brutus. even so. cassius. o ye immortal gods! [enter lucius, with wine and taper] brutus. speak no more of her. give me a bowl of wine. in this i bury all unkindness, cassius. cassius. my heart is thirsty for that noble pledge. fill, lucius, till the wine o'erswell the cup; i cannot drink too much of brutus' love. [exit lucius. enter titinius, with messala] brutus. come in, titinius; welcome, good messala. now sit we close about this taper here, and call in question our necessities. cassius. portia, art thou gone? brutus. no more, i pray you. what moral dilemma does brutus confront in this excerpt? brutus lets go of his anger toward cassius and forgives him. brutus decides that he will not mourn portia and will stay loyal to cassius. brutus decides that he is too angry at cassius to remain friends with him. brutus questions whether cassius's life should be ended.

Which of the plot elements below usually comes first in a story? climax exposition rising action resolution

"the only completely stationary object in the room was an enormous couch on which two young women were buoyed up as though upon an anchored balloon. they were both in white and their dresses were rippling and fluttering as if they had just been blown back in after a short flight around the house."