Story 2: Old Man at the Bridge (Workbook Answers)
Treasure Trove
Chapter 2
Old Man at the Bridge
(Workbook Answers)
Extract 1
Answer 1: A bridge that is made up of large hollow containers filled with air, is called a Pontoon bridge.The story is set during the Spanish civil war and the people are crossing the bridge to save themselves from the attack by the enemy troops.
Answer 2: The old man is sitting by the side of the road at a pontoon bridge.
Answer 2: The old man is sitting by the side of the road at a pontoon bridge.
The old man was too tired to go any farther because he had already walked 12 kilometres since he left his hometown of San Carlos.
Answer 3: The narrator, who is an army scout, is the speaker. He was on a mission to cross the bridge and find out how far the enemy had advanced.
Answer 4: The narrator asked the old man where he had come from.
Answer 3: The narrator, who is an army scout, is the speaker. He was on a mission to cross the bridge and find out how far the enemy had advanced.
Answer 4: The narrator asked the old man where he had come from.
The old man replied, "from San Carlos". He smiled because the mention of his native town gave him pleasure.
Answer 5: The old man was the last to leave because he was taking care of his animals. The old man wore dusty clothes and steel rimmed spectacles and his face was also grey and dusty.
Extract 2
Answer 1: The old man is referred to as 'he' in the above extract. He is very tired as he has already walked 12 kilometres and he cannot go any further. Moreover his clothes are dusty and his face has become grey.
Answer 2: He had two goats, a cat and 4 pairs of pigeons.
Answer 5: The old man was the last to leave because he was taking care of his animals. The old man wore dusty clothes and steel rimmed spectacles and his face was also grey and dusty.
Extract 2
Answer 1: The old man is referred to as 'he' in the above extract. He is very tired as he has already walked 12 kilometres and he cannot go any further. Moreover his clothes are dusty and his face has become grey.Answer 2: He had two goats, a cat and 4 pairs of pigeons.
The animals were like his family. He loved them and cared for them. Being separated from them made him feel very sad and he lost the reason for living in this world.
Answer 3: He left the animals behind in his native town of San Carlos. He was forced to do so because the enemy artillery was approaching the town.
Answer 4: The old man didn't cross the bridge to save himself because he had already travelled 12 kilometres, so he was very tired. He was also very weak and he did not have any family. His only family was his animals whom he had left behind. He felt guilty about leaving his animals behind.
Answer 5: The story shows the pointlessness of war. The author has depicted how, in times of war, man acts inhumanly to his own race. War causes death and destruction and this is highlighted through the condition of the old man. The animals were his only family, but war takes everything away from him. The war makes him alone and helpless. The old man's condition shows the condition of the victims of the war.
Extract 3
Answer 1: The old man means that he does not care about politics, he cares more about his family i.e. his animals.
Answer 3: He left the animals behind in his native town of San Carlos. He was forced to do so because the enemy artillery was approaching the town.
Answer 4: The old man didn't cross the bridge to save himself because he had already travelled 12 kilometres, so he was very tired. He was also very weak and he did not have any family. His only family was his animals whom he had left behind. He felt guilty about leaving his animals behind.
Answer 5: The story shows the pointlessness of war. The author has depicted how, in times of war, man acts inhumanly to his own race. War causes death and destruction and this is highlighted through the condition of the old man. The animals were his only family, but war takes everything away from him. The war makes him alone and helpless. The old man's condition shows the condition of the victims of the war.
Extract 3
Answer 1: The old man means that he does not care about politics, he cares more about his family i.e. his animals.The old man mentions his age to show the pain caused by the war.
Answer 2: The old man wore steel rimmed spectacles, his clothes were black and dusty and his face had turned grey from dust. In San Carlos, he was taking care of his animals.
Answer 3: The narrator is referring to the bridge situated on the Ebro river. It was not advisable to stop there because it was a war zone.
Answer 4: The narrator advised the old man to cross the bridge and catch a truck towards Barcelona. But the old man replied that he did not know anyone there. However, he thanked the narrator for his suggestion and continued to worry about his animals.
Answer 5: The old man finally resigns to his fate because he is too tired to walk any further and he has lost his desire to live because he is separated from his animals.
Answer 2: The old man wore steel rimmed spectacles, his clothes were black and dusty and his face had turned grey from dust. In San Carlos, he was taking care of his animals.
Answer 3: The narrator is referring to the bridge situated on the Ebro river. It was not advisable to stop there because it was a war zone.
Answer 4: The narrator advised the old man to cross the bridge and catch a truck towards Barcelona. But the old man replied that he did not know anyone there. However, he thanked the narrator for his suggestion and continued to worry about his animals.
Answer 5: The old man finally resigns to his fate because he is too tired to walk any further and he has lost his desire to live because he is separated from his animals.
The old man's fate is symbolic of the innocent civilians who suffer during war.
We think that the old man could not have changed his fate. The old man is too weak and helpless to change his fate.
Extract 4
Answer 1: The old man was forced to leave his hometown and leave his animals behind. He was 76 years old and had already walked 12 kilometres. All these things made him look blank and tired.
Extract 4
Answer 1: The old man was forced to leave his hometown and leave his animals behind. He was 76 years old and had already walked 12 kilometres. All these things made him look blank and tired.The manner in which the old man spoke to the narrator about his animals, shows us that he needed someone to talk to.
Answer 2: The old man loved his animals deeply. He had left the animals behind in his hometown. There was no one to look after the animals. This was the cause of the old man's worry and guilt.
Answer 3: The story shows the conflict between the old man and his inner self. The old man feels guilty about leaving his animals behind to be killed by the enemy artillery. He believed that it was his responsibility to protect his animals, which he did not fulfill.
Answer 4: Yes, we agree that the old man had given up on his life. The old man was alone and helpless, he felt guilty about leaving his animals to die and he was too tired to walk any further. All these reasons make us think that he gave up on his life.
Answer 5: The narrator talks to the old man and comforts him by saying that the cat can take care of itself, the pigeons will fly away because the cage is opened. He told the old man not to worry about the goat.
Answer 2: The old man loved his animals deeply. He had left the animals behind in his hometown. There was no one to look after the animals. This was the cause of the old man's worry and guilt.
Answer 3: The story shows the conflict between the old man and his inner self. The old man feels guilty about leaving his animals behind to be killed by the enemy artillery. He believed that it was his responsibility to protect his animals, which he did not fulfill.
Answer 4: Yes, we agree that the old man had given up on his life. The old man was alone and helpless, he felt guilty about leaving his animals to die and he was too tired to walk any further. All these reasons make us think that he gave up on his life.
Answer 5: The narrator talks to the old man and comforts him by saying that the cat can take care of itself, the pigeons will fly away because the cage is opened. He told the old man not to worry about the goat.
The narrator was not successful as the old man did not cross the bridge and the narrator left him behind.
Answer 2: The narrator feels that "there was nothing to do about him" because the old man had lost his desire to live.
Answer 3: The old man lost the reason for his existence when he left his animals behind. He did not have any family or any place to go.
The narrator tried to help the old man by repeatedly requesting him to cross the bridge. He tried to comfort the old man by saying that his animals would be safe. In the end the old man did not cross the bridge. So, the narrator was unable to save the old man.
Extract 5
Answer 1: The old man had lost his purpose to live because he was separated from his animals. The old man was alone and helpless so he had lost all hope. Therefore, the narrator notes that the old man spoke 'dully'.Answer 2: The narrator feels that "there was nothing to do about him" because the old man had lost his desire to live.
Answer 3: The old man lost the reason for his existence when he left his animals behind. He did not have any family or any place to go.
The narrator tried to help the old man by repeatedly requesting him to cross the bridge. He tried to comfort the old man by saying that his animals would be safe. In the end the old man did not cross the bridge. So, the narrator was unable to save the old man.
In these ways, both the narrator and the old man are depicted as helpless by the end.
Answer 4: "All the good luck that the old man would ever have" was that the cats could take care of themselves and the day was overcast with clouds so the enemy planes would not attack the local people.
Answer 5: The story takes place on the day of Easter. Easter is the day on which Jesus Christ rose from the dead. The irony here is that, on the day when Jesus Christ came back to life, the old man is going to lose his life.
Answer 4: "All the good luck that the old man would ever have" was that the cats could take care of themselves and the day was overcast with clouds so the enemy planes would not attack the local people.
Answer 5: The story takes place on the day of Easter. Easter is the day on which Jesus Christ rose from the dead. The irony here is that, on the day when Jesus Christ came back to life, the old man is going to lose his life.
Another example of irony in the story is that the old man is worried about his animals, but not worried about his own life. The irony is that the animals have a better chance of survival than the old man.