Question

"A Brook in the City" by Robert Frost

The farm house lingers, though averse to square
With the new city street it has to wear
A number in. But what about the brook
That held the house as in an elbow-crook?
5 I ask as one who knew the brook, its strength
And impulse, having dipped a finger-length
And made it leap my knuckle, having tossed
A flower to try its currents where they crossed.
The meadow grass could be cemented down
10 From growing under pavements of a town;
The apple trees be sent to hearth-stone flame.
Is water wood to serve a brook the same?
How else dispose of an immortal force
No longer needed? Staunch it at its source
15 With cinder loads dumped down? The brook was thrown
Deep in a sewer dungeon under stone
In fetid darkness still to live and run-
And all for nothing it had ever done
Except forget to go in fear perhaps.
20 No one would know except for ancient maps
That such a brook ran water. But I wonder
If, from its being kept forever under,
These thoughts may not have risen that so keep
This new-built city from both work and sleep.


Use the poem to answer the question.
Which line from the poem best identifies a shift in tone?

"With the new city street is has to wear"
"having tossed / A flower to try its currents"
"growing under pavements of a town;"
"In fetid darkness still to live and run --
“except for ancient maps"

Answer 1

The line from the poem that best identifies a shift in tone is:

"In fetid darkness still to live and run --"

This line marks a shift in tone as it conveys a sense of sadness and discomfort, contrasting with the earlier description of the brook and its natural surroundings. It suggests a negative turn of events or a somber reflection on what has happened to the brook.