The text suggests Bernard's attitude toward Soma is:

The text suggests Bernard's attitude toward Soma is:

• A. He embraces Soma proudly
• B. He takes extra Soma to cope
• C. He refuses Soma and then loses his temper
• D. He manufactures Soma

Answer: (C)

Soma stands for the world’s easy, chemical comfort, used to wipe away any unhappiness or doubt. A character’s stance toward Soma shows how they relate to the society’s habit of masking real feelings with pleasure and submission. Choosing the option where Bernard refuses Soma and then loses his temper captures what the text makes clear about him: he isn’t content to drink away his discontent or go along with everyone else’s happiness. He resists the drug’s escape, and when the pressure or his own frustrations mount, he snaps. That combination—rejecting the drug as a solution and reacting with anger—reflects his dissatisfaction with the social order and his inability to simply conform without some outward display of strain. The other possibilities don’t fit the portrayal as well. He isn’t shown proudly embracing Soma, which would imply wholehearted acceptance of the society’s sedative happiness. He isn’t consistently using extra Soma to cope, which would suggest dependency rather than resistance. And Soma isn’t something Bernard manufactures—production is a state-controlled function, not his role.

Soma stands for the world’s easy, chemical comfort, used to wipe away any unhappiness or doubt. A character’s stance toward Soma shows how they relate to the society’s habit of masking real feelings with pleasure and submission.

Choosing the option where Bernard refuses Soma and then loses his temper captures what the text makes clear about him: he isn’t content to drink away his discontent or go along with everyone else’s happiness. He resists the drug’s escape, and when the pressure or his own frustrations mount, he snaps. That combination—rejecting the drug as a solution and reacting with anger—reflects his dissatisfaction with the social order and his inability to simply conform without some outward display of strain.

The other possibilities don’t fit the portrayal as well. He isn’t shown proudly embracing Soma, which would imply wholehearted acceptance of the society’s sedative happiness. He isn’t consistently using extra Soma to cope, which would suggest dependency rather than resistance. And Soma isn’t something Bernard manufactures—production is a state-controlled function, not his role.