Author’s purpose

HESI A2
Reading Comprehension
Multiple choice
Difficulty 3 of 5

Question

Passage

A neighborhood theater is preparing to reopen a small upstairs rehearsal room. The volunteers have been choosing curtains and arranging chairs, but the building coordinator has asked them to include another task on the opening checklist: checking the smoke alarms. In a home, safety guidance calls for alarms inside sleeping rooms, outside sleeping areas, and on every floor, including a basement. That pattern illustrates why a single alarm in a distant location should not be assumed to cover every space where people sleep. The theater is not a residence, so its coordinator must consult the rules that apply to the building rather than simply treating home guidance as a complete code. Still, the home example offers a useful starting point for a conversation about coverage. The volunteers can mark the locations on a floor plan, then ask the appropriate local authority what the rehearsal space requires.

What is the author’s main purpose?

To use a home safety example to encourage a building-specific review✓ Correct

The passage uses the home example to prompt a review of this particular space.
To establish a legal alarm code for every theater✗ Incorrect

It explicitly says the applicable building rules must be checked.
To argue that curtains are the main cause of fires✗ Incorrect

Curtains are mentioned as preparations, not identified as a cause.
To recount a fire that closed a rehearsal room✗ Incorrect

No actual fire or closure is described.

Answer

A. To use a home safety example to encourage a building-specific review

Rationale

The writer connects a familiar household example to a practical planning task. The distinction between a residence and the theater shows why a local review is needed.

RememberIdentify the action or understanding the whole passage supports.

Sources

Smoke Alarms Federal Emergency Management Agency · License: US government work (public domain) · Retrieved November 2, 2026 · Smoke Alarms

Last verified: November 5, 2026 2 independent automated checks Question teas-rcs-00274, version 1

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