In the poem, who encounters the statue?

• A. The traveller
• B. The poet
• C. A sailor
• D. A nurse

Answer: (A)

The key idea here is who actually comes across the statue in the poem. The opening line tells us, “I met a traveller from an antique land,” which makes the traveller the person who encounters the statue. The traveller describes what is seen—the ruined statue in the desert—and from that description we learn about the ruler’s arrogance and the transient nature of power. The poet is the voice relaying the traveller’s tale, not the one who meets the statue, and the other two options aren’t present in the poem. So the traveller is the one who encounters the statue.