How do the first paragraphs of the story create tension

In hard times by charles dickens, mr. gradgrind’s name can be interpreted in several ways. the selection supports all of the following interpretations except he grinds out graduates who are similar to each other as if he were running a factory he grinds the importance of facts into students’ heads he grinds down children by crushing their imaginations he grinds his teeth together, suggesting his intolerance for fantasy

What functions as a reflexive pronoun in the sentence the professor herself wanted to attend the conference, but it was cancelled when she and several other presenters had to excuse themselves

In the call to adventure what starts a hero on his or her heroic path