What is meant by this statement: “The elements that sparked a powerful

What is meant by this statement: “The elements that sparked a powerful sense of nationalism among colonists dispersed over a huge territory would not be evident for a long time”?

a. The colonists tended to dislike the colonists in regions other than their own.
b. The colonies were getting very close to forming an independent country.
c. The colonies were still separate and had very little to do with each other.
d. The colonies had expanded to a huge area of the country.
e. The colonists saw themselves as English first and Americans second.

ANSWER
C