Choice C

Hi Meredith, thanks for the question! Answer choice C says that the dichotomy between popular and sophisticated literature is well illustrated in the crime novels of P.D. James. However, it is not through her novels that we compare and contrast popular and sophisticated literature. The author simply tells us some traits of popular novels and some traits of sophisticated literature. We don't learn this distinction through her novels. Even if we did, this isn't the main point. The author uses the entire passage to say that she is constrained by her genre, and at the end makes the suggestion that she "slide out of her handcuffs and stride into the territory of the mainstream novel", which is why answer choice A is correct. Hope this helps!

How about choice b?

The author has no issue with the popular novel, but is arguing that the author is constrained by the genre of the detective novel.