5 of 165 of 16 Items Question Use the excerpt from H. H. Munro’s story “Dusk” to answer the question. So Gortsby’s imagination pictured things as he sat on his bench in the almost deserted walk. He was in the mood to count himself among the defeated. Money troubles did not press on him; had he so wished he could have strolled into the thoroughfares of light and noise, and taken his place among the jostling ranks of those who enjoyed prosperity or struggled for it. He had failed in a more subtle ambition, and for the moment he was heartsore and disillusionised, and not disinclined to take a certain cynical pleasure in observing and labeling his fellow wanderers as they went their ways in the dark stretches between the lamp-lights. On the bench by his side sat an elderly gentleman with a drooping air of defiance that was probably the remaining vestige of self-respect in an individual who had ceased to defy successfully anybody or anything. His clothes could scarcely be called shabby, at least they passed muster in the half-light, but one’s imagination could not have pictured the wearer embarking on the purchase of a half-crown box of chocolates or laying out ninepence on a carnation buttonhole. He belonged unmistakably to that forlorn orchestra to whose piping no one dances; he was one of the world’s lamenters who induce no responsive weeping. As he rose to go Gortsby imagined him returning to a home circle where he was snubbed and of no account, or to some bleak lodging where his ability to pay a weekly bill was the beginning and end of the interest he inspired. His retreating figure vanished slowly into the shadows, and his place on the bench was taken almost immediately by a young man, fairly well dressed but scarcely more cheerful of mien than his predecessor. As if to emphasise the fact that the world went badly with him the newcomer unburdened himself of an angry and very audible expletive as he flung himself into the seat. Which detail about the setting best helps convey the mood of the excerpt? (1 point) Responses he could have strolled into the thoroughfares of light and noise he could have strolled into the thoroughfares of light and noise he had failed in a more subtle ambition, and for the moment he was heartsore and disillusionized he had failed in a more subtle ambition, and for the moment he was heartsore and disillusionized one’s imagination could not have pictured the wearer embarking on the purchase of a half-crown box of chocolates or laying out ninepence on a carnation buttonhole one’s imagination could not have pictured the wearer embarking on the purchase of a half-crown box of chocolates or laying out ninepence on a carnation buttonhole on the bench by his side sat an elderly gentleman on the bench by his side sat an elderly gentleman Skip to navigation page 1 of 1

Answer 1

The detail about the setting that best helps convey the mood of the excerpt is: he had failed in a more subtle ambition, and for the moment he was heartsore and disillusionized.

This detail encapsulates Gortsby's feelings of defeat and disillusionment, which are central to the mood of the passage. The contrast between his potential to join the vibrancy of the "thoroughfares of light and noise" and his current state of mind emphasizes his melancholy and introspection, contributing significantly to the overall atmosphere of the excerpt.