Question

PART A: Which statement expresses one of the main themes of the poem? A It can be better to live in the present, because reflecting on the past and planning for the future can bring worry and disappointment. B It is humans' responsibility to care for the environment and their fellow creatures on Earth. C Humans rarely feel guilty about their impact on the environment, because natural resources are necessary for them to survive. D The damage that humans inflict upon the environment and the animals that inhabit it are irreversible.

Answer 1

Answer:

A. It can be better to live in the present, because reflecting on the past and planning for the future can bring worry and disappointment.

Explanation:

One of the themes that is expressed in the poem "To a Mouse" by Robert Burns is that people often suffer unnecessarily from remembering the past an planning for the future.

In this poem, the author apologizes to a mouse for startling him, and reflects on the difficult life that mice have. However, he argues that this life is still better than human life, because at least the mouse only lives in the present (Still you are blessed, compared with me! / The present only touches you” (Lines

43-44)). On the other hand, humans often plan for the future, only to see their dreams unfulfilled, which brings them grief (The best laid schemes of mice and men / Go often askew, / And leave us

nothing but grief and pain).