Final answer:
The provided text passages are from a literary work, utilizing elements like ropes and planks in a dramatic narrative, rather than a factual or instructional discussion about scaffold safety systems.
Step-by-step explanation:
The passages provided involve detailed narrative elements and depict scenes of tension, contemplation, and action, all indicative of literature analysis. These excerpts, such as the descriptions of a man on the brink of execution on a bridge and a painter on a scaffold.
It not technical manuals on scaffolding or equipment but rather are from stories that likely aim to engage the reader with their dramatic events and vivid imagery. The descriptions use the situations as metaphors or to build suspense rather than serving as a factual representation of safety equipment or processes.
In terms of answering the given question about the rope and harness system, it appears out of context here. However, the provided excerpts illustrate how equipment such as ropes and planks can serve as key elements within a literary narrative to build tension or develop a setting.