Answer:
1. A. Both life and death cannot be planned.
2. A. “‘But I cannot die till I have achieved my destiny. Then let Death come: I shall have built my monument.’” (Paragraph 12).
3. C. They welcome him and discuss what he says to them.
4. C. They reveal that the young man wants more from life, but the daughter is satisfied with her current life.
5. A. The contrast between a warm and happy home with the threat of the mountain foreshadows the danger to come.
6. The setting contributes to the irony of the passage by presenting the house as a vulnerable place, and the mountain as a dangerous threat. The reader is led to believe that if danger ever befalls them, it will be because of the location of the house in respect to the mountain. However, the irony is that the tragedy happens while they were trying to reach the safe place, and that they would have been safe if they had stayed in the house.
Explanation:
In this story, Hawthorne reminds us that we can never plan life or death. While we might have things we want to achieve, there is no guarantee that we will be able to do so before we die. This is what happens to the ambitious guest, who dies before he is able to do anything of importance. This is contrasted with the way the daughter thinks, as she is happy with her current life. Moreover, this idea is highlighted by the setting. Despite the fact that the house seems safe and cozy, it is constantly threatened by the risk of death.
