Read the excerpt from "An Irish Airman Foresees His Death." I balanced all, brought all to mind, The years to come seemed waste of breath, A waste of breath the years behind In balance with this life, this death. Which statement best describes how this excerpt contrasts with the main idea in "Do not go gentle into that good night"?
Answer
A
While the main idea in "Do not go gentle into that good night" is to fear death, the main idea in the excerpt is that death is natural and should be embraced when the time comes.
B
While the main idea in "Do not go gentle into that good night" is to fight death, the speaker in this excerpt claims that it does not matter whether a person lives or dies.
C
While the main idea in "Do not go gentle into that good night" is to accept death when it comes, the speaker in this excerpt urges his audience to fight for life.
D
While the main idea in "Do not go gentle into that good night" is to live life to the fullest, the main idea in the excerpt is that all attempts to lead a meaningful life are futile.
Explanation
In “Do not go gentle into that good night,” the speaker urges people to resist death and “rage” against it. In Yeats’s excerpt, the airman weighs the years behind him and ahead, finding them equal in value to “this life, this death.” This suggests he sees little difference between living and dying, so choice B best describes the contrast.
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