Read the excerpt from washington irving's "the devil and tom walker," and then answer the question. "about the year 1727, just at the time when earthquakes were prevalent in new england, and shook many tall sinners down upon their knees, there lived near this place a meager miserly fellow of the name of tom walker. he had a wife as miserly as himself; they were so miserly that they even conspired to cheat each other." what does the word miserly mean? a. sly b. sad c. mean d. stingy

I’m american society, romantic love is considered the main reason for people to marry. on the other hand, in some societies, romantic love is considered a form of obsession or madness. in fact, even in many societies where “true love” is not considered a form of insanity, arranged marriages are still the norm. for example, in many cultures it’s believed that marriage is basically an economic arrangement. thus, a farmer needs a wife to both bear children and to share the farm work while raising new “hands” as additional farm labor. in other societies marriage is mainly about cementing connections between families. indeed, most trust, loyalty, and mutual obligations between privileged and powerful families. what is the main idea in this paragraph? a. arranged marriages are more practical then those on romantic love. b. marriage is usually a family affair. c. true love is a sound basis for marriage. d. different societies have different ideas about the purpose of marriage.