Which best analyzes the author's technique in this sentence? kate squirmed in her seat, uncomfortable by her parents' deafening silence.

An oxymoron is a technique an author employs in which two seemingly contradictory terms are used in conjunction to create an image.  When we think of something that is deafening, we think of something that is loud enough to burst an eardrum.  When we think of something that is silent, we think of something that makes no sound at all.  Thus, the author employs an oxymoron with the terms "deafening silence."