Who does Gene see skiing while his is clearing the railroads?

Who does Gene see skiing while his is clearing the railroads?

• A. Leper
• B. Finny
• C. Gene
• D. Cliff

Answer: (A)

This moment centers on Leper Lepellier as the skier. Leper is introduced in the story as the Devon boy with a natural affinity for winter sports, especially skiing, and that identity becomes a clear symbol of his carefree, precise, almost delicate approach to life. Seeing him glide past while others are busy clearing the railroad tracks contrasts Leper’s light, athletic focus with the heavier, grinding labor of wartime duty. It highlights how Leper’s world—where sport and ritual of the outdoors define him—is distinct from the grim realities the other boys face as they contribute to the war effort. That contrast also foreshadows later tensions: Leper’s love of skiing and orderliness stand apart from the pressures of adulthood and war that disrupt his sense of self. Finny isn’t the skier in this moment, Gene isn’t the skier, and Cliff isn’t the figure described here, so the scene most clearly points to Leper as the person Gene sees skiing.

This moment centers on Leper Lepellier as the skier. Leper is introduced in the story as the Devon boy with a natural affinity for winter sports, especially skiing, and that identity becomes a clear symbol of his carefree, precise, almost delicate approach to life. Seeing him glide past while others are busy clearing the railroad tracks contrasts Leper’s light, athletic focus with the heavier, grinding labor of wartime duty. It highlights how Leper’s world—where sport and ritual of the outdoors define him—is distinct from the grim realities the other boys face as they contribute to the war effort.

That contrast also foreshadows later tensions: Leper’s love of skiing and orderliness stand apart from the pressures of adulthood and war that disrupt his sense of self. Finny isn’t the skier in this moment, Gene isn’t the skier, and Cliff isn’t the figure described here, so the scene most clearly points to Leper as the person Gene sees skiing.