Question

How does the author create a mood of pervasive sadness in this poem?


A) He speaks of "Old Ironsides" having betrayed its proper mission.
B) He speaks of "Old Ironsides" as being put to death, as if it were a sentient being.
C) He speaks of "Old Ironsides" as being bested by a superior foe.
D) He speaks of "Old Ironsides" as having lost its sense of purpose.

Answer 1

The correct answer is B. He speaks of old Iron sides as being put to death as if it were a sentient being.

Explanation

• Old iron sides were written by an American poet and writer Oliver Wendell Holmes in the year 1868. This poem s written by Holmes to pay his tributes and appreciate the services of the USS Constitution, one of the oldest commissioned naval vessel or ship in the world.
• The USS constitution is also known as the old Iron Slides which was named by the then president of United States George Washington. This vessel witnessed several starting from the Quasi-war and finally, it got its nickname the old Iron slides during the war of 1812.
• The poem The Old Iron Sides was written as a response to protest and resentment to the nation's Navy move to scrap the services of the USS constitution. The Navy had finally decided that they would dismantle the ship and would not use it anymore. Subsequently, Holmes decided to express the nation's sentiment through his poem. In the poem, the poet expresses a mood of pervasive regret and disappointment by writing bout the ship's end s if it was living being.