The number devil started doing the problem in his head, but his face turned bright red again and swelled up like a balloon. Was
it because he was angry, Robert wondered, or because the problem was hard? “Wait a second,” the number devil mumbled. “I can’t seem to come up with anything. You were right. It doesn’t work. How did you know?”
“I didn’t. You don’t think I’m crazy enough to try a problem like that do you? I was just guessing.”
“Guessing? Guessing is not allowed in Mathematics! Mathematics is an exact science!”
“But when you said that numbers don’t stop, that they go on till the cows come home, that was a guess, wasn’t it?”
“How dare you? What are you, anyway? A beginner! A rank amateur! And you want to teach me my trade?”
—The Number Devil,
Hans Magnus Enzenberger
What is one difference between Robert and the Number Devil that you learn from the passage?
Robert likes to guess, but the number devil does not.
The Number Devil asks questions, but Robert does not.
The Number Devil likes doing math, but Robert does not.
