Read the excerpt from The Odyssey. Then I sent out two picked men and a runner to learn what race of men that land sustained. They fell in, soon enough, with Lotus-Eaters, who showed no will to do us harm, only offering the sweet Lotus to our friends— but those who ate this honeyed plant, the Lotus, never cared to report, nor to return: they longed to stay forever, browsing on that native bloom, forgetful of their homeland. Which central idea should be included in a paraphrase of this excerpt? The men sent by Odysseus to investigate the land they had landed upon became forgetful after eating Lotus plants. The Lotus-Eaters meant no harm and simply offered the Lotus plant to Odysseus’s men as a gesture of kindness. The Lotus was a sweet plant that made men forget everything except the idea of obtaining and eating more Lotus plants. The men sent ashore by Odysseus were swayed by the hospitality of the Lotus-Eaters and abandoned the idea of returning home.
