The End of the World by Jon Caswell

The cooling rain had come over the valley in the afternoon, tapping on the dry grass roof of the hut. Inside there was very little light, just enough to make out a woman grinding corn with two lava rocks. Somewhere out of sight a baby cried.
Rico stood at the door waiting for the rain to stop so he could take his plow back into his corn field. Below, the river boiled brown. The concrete highway, another type of river, did not flow at all; it lay shining, empty. No car had come along it in an hour, which was highly unusual. Over the years, hardly an hour had gone by when a car hadn’t stopped and someone shouted at Rico, “Hey there, can we take your picture?” If he walked toward them without his hat, they would say, “Oh, we want you with your hat on!” So, he would return for his hat.
His wife had noticed the lack of traffic and said, “Something is wrong, Rico.”
“I know,” he replied. “Something big must have happened to make the road so empty.”
He walked slowly from the hut, the rain washing over the twined shoes of grass and thick tire rubber he wore. He remembered how he had gotten the rubber. The tire had come into his hut with violence one night, exploding the chickens and pots apart! It had come alone, rolling swiftly. The car it had come off of had rushed on as far as the curve where it plunged into the river. It was still there. One might see it when the river ran slow and the mud cleared. However, on most days, the mud covered it. The very next day he had carved the shoe soles from the tire rubber.
He had reached the road and stood upon it, listening to the small sounds it made in the rain. Then, suddenly, as if on cue, the cars came, hundreds of them, miles of them, rushing by him. The long black cars were heading north toward the United States, with a ceaseless noise. He stepped back, but there was something about the faces of the people in the cars, something which he found disturbing and caused him to wonder where they were going in such a hurry. Then, they were gone, and it was silent again. It had been like a funeral procession.
He was about to return to his field when a final car, an old, green Ford, belching steam, came around the curve. When the driver saw Rico, he pulled over and rolled down his window, “Kind sir, may we have some water, please? Our car is overheating.”
“Of course, are you with those other cars?” Rico asked as he took a bucket and scooped up some water from his burro’s trough.
“Yes,” the driver replied.
“Where are you going?”
“Haven’t you heard?” the driver said. “The war has started, and we are fleeing. You should come with us. It is the end of the world.”
Rico poured the water in the car radiator. “I think I’ll stay here, if you don’t mind. It will take a long time for the end of the world to find us in this poor valley.”
2

Select ALL the correct answers.
Which two sentences best describe the role of the setting in the passage?
The setting helps develop the theme related to bravery.
The setting highlights the serene nature of life away from town.
The setting helps add an element of suspense to the story.
The setting provides insight into Rico's view of life on the farm.
The setting reveals Rico's stubborn attitude about leaving.