Question

independent practice
read the verse.
from \the raven\ by edgar allan poe
once upon a midnight dreary, while i pondered, weak and weary,
over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore—
while i nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
as of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
\tis some visitor,\ i muttered, \tapping at my chamber door—
only this, and nothing more.\
in this excerpt from \the raven,\ what is the speaker doing when he hears a knock at the door?
a. pacing
b. reading
c. sleeping
d. weeping

Explanation:

The text states the speaker was "pondered, weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore" (meaning reading old books) when the tapping at the door occurred, and was nearly napping while doing so. This matches option B.

Answer:

B. reading