Which excerpt from a student essay maintains the most objective tone?
a. steinbeck's initial description of the stranger's wagon was so comical that i really didn't take his character seriously.
b. steinbeck's initial description of the stranger's wagon makes the character seem almost comical.
c. i liked the way that steinbeck's initial description of the stranger's wagon makes his character seem almost comical.
d. it was hard for me to take the stranger's character seriously because steinbeck's initial description of his wagon was so comical.

The most objective excerpt is B: Steinbeck's initial description of the stranger's wagon makes the character seem almost comical.

Explanation:

The most objective excerpt is B: Steinbeck's initial description of the stranger's wagon makes the character seem almost comical. The other options all have subjective opinions. When writing an objective essay, personal opinions should be avoided. For example, in excerpt A the expression "I didn't take his character seriously" is too personal, and also quite informal. The same happens in excerpt C, where the student uses the expression "I liked the way...". That kind of phrase could be useful when expressing an opinion but not to describe or analyze someone's work. Option D also uses the first person, which is never objective as it is used to express personal points of view. That's why B is the most objective of all options: the observations made are not in first person and don't express a subjective opinion.