Hi Everyone!! This article will share The Bridge Builder Questions & Answers.
This poem is written by Will Allen Dromogoole. In my previous posts, I have shared the questions and answers The Trusted Thief, A Boy and His Dad and Our House Is On Fire so, you can check these posts as well.
The Bridge Builder Questions & Answers
Word Galaxy
- Chasm – a narrow valley between hills or mountains
- Sullen – dark and unpleasant
- Rapids – a part of the river where the current runs very swiftly
- Span – extend from side to side of
- Even-tide – evening
- Pitfall – problem or difficulty
- Naught – nothing
Question 1: Read and answer the questions:
(a) Who was the old man?
Answer: The old man was a builder.
(b) Where was he?
Answer: The old man was on a lone highway.
(c) What did he start to build?
Answer: He started to build a bridge.
Question 2: ‘Your journey will end with the ending day’. This line has a deeper meaning. Can you explain it.
Answer: The old man has crossed many stages of life. Life, in the poem is considered as a journey which lasts an entire day, where a person has to end the journey when the day ends. It is for each traveller to decide the role he will play while on the journey.
Question 3: Describe the stream which the old man crossed?
Answer: The stream which the old man crossed was sullen. It was extremely dark and threatening.
Question 4: Why did the fellow pilgrim try to stop the old man?
Answer: The fellow pilgrim tried to stop the old man from building the bridge because he thought the old man had already crossed the dangerous chasm and there was no need for him to go back to the other side. Going back would mean further difficulty and danger at his age, it would be very difficult for him to cross it back again.
Question 5: Read and answer the questions:
(a) Who said these words and to whom?
Answer: A fellow pilgrim said to the old man.
(b) What did the speaker say to the old man?
Answer: The speaker said to the old man that you are wasting your time building a bridge that you will never cross and why are you building at even-tide.
(c) How is the speaker different from the old man?
Answer: The speaker is different from the old man in the sense that he is thinking only about his comfort whereas the old man is thinking about the persons who will follow him.
Question 6: Describe the path that the old man was passing through.
Answer: The path that the old man was passing through was a lone highway. It was a narrow valley between hills. The stream was in tide.
The Bridge Builder Questions & Answers
Question 7: Which lines in the poem indicate that crossing the chasm was not difficult for the old man?
Answer: The lines in the poem which indicate that it was not difficult for the old man are –
The old man crossed in the twilight dim
The rapids held no fears for him.
Question 8: This chasm has been as naught to me
To that fair- haired youth may a pitfall be;”
Why does the speaker say that the chasm might be a pit fall for the fair-haired youth? What does the old man do after this? Why does he do that?
Answer: The speaker, the old man says that the chasm might be pitfall for the fair-haired youth because unlike the old man who is experienced and knows the ways of the turbulent stream, a young traveler would not know the way to cross the stream and chasm might prove dangerous for him. The old man therefore decides to build a bridge spanning the tide. He does that to help the future generations of people to cross the stream safely without any difficulty.
Question 9: Read and answer the questions:
(a) Which stream is the speaker talking about?
Answer: The speaker is talking about a stream with high tide.
(b) To whom would the stream be a pitfall?
Answer: The stream could be a pitfall to the fair youth/ future generation.
(c) According to the speaker, why was he building the bridge?
Answer: According to the speaker, he was building the bridge to help the future generations of people to cross the stream safely without any difficulty.
Question 10: How would you justify the title of the poem?
Answer: It is a suitable title. The word bridge denotes a connection between a person and a goal that is difficult to achieve. Bridge builders like the old man work for the society and make changes so that a large number of people can achieve a common goal.
So, these were The Bridge Builder Questions & Answers.