Question

‘Mrs. Croft’s was the first death I mourned in America, for, hers was the first life I had admired; she had left this world, at last, ancient and alone, never to return’—how do these lines encapsulate the bond that is possible between two strangers?

Answer 1

A person usually feels very detached from people staying around him abroad. Here is where originates the feeling of diaspora. The same happened with the narrator. He was away from his home and his family and, thus, never grew any feeling of affection towards anybody in America. He was quite alienated by the people of America. However, the course of an action justifies his attachment and the emotional bonding which grew between him and Mrs. Croft. In the foreign land, he grew a fondness of the old lady because of various reasons. When he got to know that she was older than a century, he felt a sense of responsibility towards her. He was amazed and was quite awestruck at the idea of a widow of that age residing all alone, with nobody to take care of her. Taking up chores like heating her soup every evening or giving her eight dollars in the envelope every month satisfied him. All these instances and many more cite the fact that a very strong bond had developed between the lady and the narrator.