Question

Building the Bridge
by Will Allen Dromgoogle
An old man, going a lone highway,
Came, at the evening cold and gray,
To a chasm, vast, deep, and wide,
Through which was flowing a sullen tide.
The old man crossed in the twilight dim;
The sullen stream had no fear for him;
But he turned, when safe on the other side,
And built a bridge to span the tide.

“Old man,” said a fellow traveler near,
“You are wasting strength with building here;
Your journey will end with the ending day;
You never again must pass this way;
You have crossed the chasm, deep and wide—
Why build this bridge at the eventide?”

The builder lifted his old gray head:
“Good friend, in the path I have come,” he said,
“There followeth after me today
A youth, whose feet must pass this way.
This chasm, that has been naught to me,
To that fair-haired youth may a pitfall be.
He, too, must cross in the twilight dim;
Good friend, I am building the bridge for him.”

___

Adapted from “Building the Bridge,” by Will Allen Dromgoogle, in Rare Old Chums, Public domain.


Questions
Which of the following statements should be included in a summary of the poem?

The first stanza reveals that the speaker is an industrious old man who like to build.

The last stanza reveals that the speaker is compassionate about helping others.

The second stanza reveals that the fellow traveler is also compassionate about helping others.

The last line reveals the fellow traveler will also benefit from the speaker’s compassion.

Answer 1

Include statements 1 and 2.

- Statement 1: Supported — the first stanza shows an old man who, after crossing the chasm, stops to build a bridge (so it portrays him as industrious and a builder).
- Statement 2: Supported — the last stanza makes clear he is thinking of and helping others (building the bridge for the youth who will follow).

Do not include statements 3 or 4:
- Statement 3 is incorrect — the fellow traveler questions the old man’s actions, not showing compassion.
- Statement 4 is unsupported — the last line says the bridge is for the youth, not that the fellow traveler will benefit.