Question #N1116
The following text is adapted from "The Open Boat" by Stephen Crane, an American writer who became famous for his naturalist style. The text describes a storm that is threatening a small lifeboat with four men aboard: "Then the captain, in the manner of the old-time sea-captains who went down with their ships, said to the men: "Well, boys, we’ve got her at last!"
Which choice best revises the underlined portion of the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. Well boys, we got her at last!
B. Well, boys, we've got her at last!
C. Well, boys, we’ve got her at last!
D. Well boys, we got her at last!
Correct Answer is: B
The convention being tested is the use of contractions. The contraction "we’ve" is the correct form for the contraction of "we have" and matches the conventions of Standard English. The other choices are incorrect because they fail to use the correct contraction or don’t use any contraction at all.