Question

Read the third stanza of "The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls."

The morning breaks; the steeds in their stalls Stamp and neigh, as the hostler calls; The day returns, but nevermore Returns the traveller to the shore, And the tide rises, the tide falls.

Which statement best describes the purpose of the word “nevermore”?
A) The word helps create a mood of encroaching dread.
B) The word gives greater meaning to everything that precedes it.
C) The word helps create a more dramatic, resolute tone.
D) The word emphasizes the song-like feel of the poem.

Answer 1

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born on February 27, 1807 and died on March 24, 1882. He was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline. He was also the first American to translate Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy and was one of the four Fireside Poets from New England.

“The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow describes a coastal scene. The tide rises, and the tide falls. Its twilight, a bird is calling, and a traveller is leaving the shore, heading for a near town. Now it's dark, the sea is shouting, and the waves erase the traveller's footprints from the shore. Despite this disconsolate perspective, the dawn does come again. There are signs of life everywhere. Horses are ready and raising to go; a hostler is calling out. Sure, the traveller will never return to the shore because he's dead, but the tide rises again, and then… well, the tide falls.

The statement that best describes the purpose of the word “nevermore” is:

C) The word helps create a more dramatic, resolute tone.

Answer 2

Answer: C) The word helps create a more dramatic, resolute tone.

Step-by-step explanation: The tone of a text or sentence is the author's or speaker's attitude towards the audience, the subject or even the characters of the text. There are many different kinds of tones, like: positive, negative, objective, sad, angry, etc. In the given stanza of "The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls" we can see that the word "nevermore" helps to create a dramatic and resolute tone.