Question

read the poem. there are several questions about this poem.
there are 49 lines in the poem. the poem is numbered every 5 lines.
the wood-pile
out walking in the frozen swamp one grey day
i paused and said, \i will turn back from here.
no, i will go on farther—and we shall see.\
the hard snow held me, save where now and then
one foot went down. the view was all in lines
straight up and down of tall slim trees
too much alike to mark or name a place by
so as to say for certain i was here
or somewhere else. i was just far from home
a small bird flew before me. he was careful
to put a tree between us when he lighted.
and say no word to tell me who he was
who was so foolish as to think what he thought.
he thought that i was after him for a feather—
the white one in his tail, like one who takes
everything said as personal to himself.
one flight sideways would have undeceived him.
and then there was a pile of wood for which
i forgot him and let his little fear
carry him off the way i might have gone.
without so much as wishing him good-night.
he went behind it to make his last stand.
it was a cord of maple, cut and split
and piled—and measured, four by four by eight.
and not another like it could i see.
no runner tracks in this year’s snow looped near it.
these lines are from the poem:
\he thought that i was after him for a feather—
the white one in his tail, like one who takes
everything said as personal to himself.\ (lines 14 - 16)
which statement best explains how these lines create dramatic irony?

1. the speaker describes a small bird and its thoughts,

leading the reader to determine whether the speaker is trustworthy.

1. the speaker is surprised by the bird even though the

speaker was warned earlier that unexpected events might occur.

1. the speaker and the bird unexpectedly meet face - to - face,

creating suspense about what the speaker and the bird will do next.

1. the speaker assumes to know what the bird thinks, even

after accusing the bird of making a similar assumption about the speaker.

Explanation:

Dramatic irony arises when the audience knows more than a character. Here, the speaker thinks the bird views him as unimportant ("like one who takes / Everything said as personal to himself"), but the bird's earlier careful action (putting a tree between them) shows it actually sees the speaker as a threat. This contrast between the speaker's belief and the bird's true perception creates dramatic irony, which matches option 4's description of the speaker assuming the bird shares his flawed perspective.

Answer:

1. The speaker assumes to know what the bird thinks, even after accusing the bird of making a similar assumption about the speaker.