Central Idea - Non-Fiction Suspense

What are the ways the author reveals the central idea in the article?

• examples

• analogies

• questions

• examples

Readers are human, and humans seem programmed to wait for answers to questions they witness being asked. I learned that fact in my first job. I worked in television production from 1977 until 1995, and the business changed radically during that time, mainly because of one particular invention. It was something that almost no one had in 1980, and that almost everyone had in 1990, and it changed the game forever. We had to cope with it. We had to invent a solution to the serious problem it posed.

In this paragraph, the author uses an...

• analogy

• anecdote

• example

• elective

What must a reader do in order to determine the central idea?

• look for key idea and details

• look for anecdotes

• listen to the author's interview

• study the beginning, middle and end paragraphs

For instance, heading toward a movie review program, I remember we asked: Who was the studio’s first choice for the Harry Callahan role in "Dirty Harry”?

We knew most viewers would be intrigued. (What, Clint Eastwood wasn’t the first choice?) But—and this was the lesson—the success of the tactic didn’t depend on intrigue. Even viewers with no interest at all stuck around to find out. Humans are hard-wired. They need to know. Even viewers who knew the answer for sure stuck around, in order to be gratified. The gap was bridged, and the danger averted. (It was Frank Sinatra. You waited, right?)

Which best describes this excerpt?

• The central idea of this excerpt is that Clint Eastwood was not the original choice for the Dirty Harry movie.

• The central idea of this excerpt is that intrigue is the most important way to create suspense.

• The author uses an analogy to compare his readers to the characters of a Hollywood movie.

• The author uses a personal anecdote to show that audiences are willing to wait for an answer.