Old Man at the Bridge

Identify the three observations the narrator makes that reveal the most about his character. Explain your answers.

At the end of the story, the narrator says of the old man, “There is nothing to be done about him” (58). Is this true? Discuss the morality of his response to the old man.

The imagery in “The Old Man at the Bridge” is mostly rooted in visual description. Rewrite the first paragraph to include elements of sound, smell, and touch. How does the addition of these descriptions change the story?

“The Old Man at the Bridge” uses a cat as a symbol of certain personality traits. How would the story change if Hemingway made the symbolic animal a dog?

Hemingway’s iceberg theory of writing means the reader sees only a fraction of what happens. If Hemingway were to increase that fraction and give the old man more dialogue, what would he say to the soldier?

This story’s setting became the site of the Battle of the Ebro, the longest and bloodiest battle of the Spanish Civil War. Research this battle, and write a scene in which the narrator of “The Old Man and the Bridge” describes one day of this conflict.

Many of the story’s themes were inspired by Hemingway’s experience of World War I and its aftermath. Which theme is the most powerful, and how is it illustrated in the story? Is this theme still relevant to current life? Give examples to explain your answers.

Choose an image or an object from this story, and describe it from the perspective of either the narrator or the old man, using details from the text.