The Four Levels of The Great Answer (Fulton Oursler)

1. Literal Comprehension

The story ‘The Great Answer’ begins with, people fleeing from the German Army. Like every other person, there was a young mother and a little girl whose aim was to board the ship to America from Spain. But they are not letting refugees pass as there is the rumor of secret police. So the young woman prays to God for help.

One day a man comes to her room and says that he’s a guide from the underground who is going to lead parties of refugees at night. So that night the mother and child went to the rendezvous spot, where they found many other people of the same age. It was a long way to get to that spot because of which both the mother and daughter were tired so all the people agreed to take a turn to carry her child.

On the way, another three people say the same thing and the answer from the leader stayed the same, too. In the morning everyone has crossed the border. Those men who carried the lady’s child seem to have found new strength and new life.

2. Interpretation

This story ‘The Great Answer’ is trying to give us a great answer to the riddle of life. The answer is to help others ultimately it will help us. Through the mountain path that people crossed, the writer is trying to show us the path of life which will be filled with a lot of sorrows, pains, and failure, we might want to give up feeling we cannot do things anymore but no – you can do it. There is still some strength within everyone. People just need to have faith in themselves. Similarly, the story is not only showing us to have faith in our strength but also to have faith in God who will one way or another help us.

3. Creative thinking

This is an interesting story which tells us never to lose faith and always to have hope.

• The question is the path is really steep and hard. How can those old men carry the child on that hard road?  To begin with, they were already tired.
• In this selfish world, would anyone be ready to save us when the question is about survival?
• On the other hand, by having faith in God, how wise is it to jump on challenges just because God has our back?

4. Assimilation

This story is quite relatable to most people’s life. I guess there has been no one whose life has not burdened them with challenges, failures. And then dragged them to the mountain-top of success climbing the ladder of their skill, after all this is what life is. You fall down and get up and try again, this is the topmost thing that ‘The Great Answer’ has taught me.