A Dream Within a Dream

Note from the author:

This formative looks for meaning within the poem " A Dream within a Dream" and then covers a few of the poetic devices used.

In an article published in 1849, Poe wrote, "It is by no means an irrational fancy that, in a future existence, we shall look upon what we think our present existence, as a dream."

Explain what Poe is saying in his statement above. Full sentences only please.

A Dream Within a Dream
BY EDGAR ALLAN POE

Take this kiss upon the brow!               line 1
And, in parting from you now,
Thus much let me avow —
You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream;       line 5
Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?
All that we see or seem                         line 10
Is but a dream within a dream.

I stand amid the roar
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand —                line 15
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep — while I weep!
O God! Can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?                    line 20
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?

VOCABULARY

Let's run through some vocabulary that you may not know. If there are any words that are not included on this list please don't stay silent.

Brow (Line 1) - Someone's forehead. 

Avow (Line 3) - To avow something is to say it with authority. 

Deem (Line 4) - To "deem" something is to regard it in a specific way. The unspecified addressee "deems" that the speaker has lived in a dream. 

Amid (Line 12) - This means in the surrounded by (in the middle/midst of). 

Surf-tormented (Line 13) - The shore is tortured by the constant breaking waves (according to the speaker). 

Clasp (Line 20) - To clasp something is to grab it tightly. 

Pitiless (Line 22) - This means that the waves show no mercy and are indifferent to the speaker's concerns.

Select one of the words and use it in a sentence. (include at least 2 discriptive words)

LOOKING FOR MEANING

In the first stanza, the speaker is saying goodbye to someone and states that their days have been a dream. They confide in this person that they are questioning their reality.

Thinking back to Edgar Allan Poes life, who do you think he might be saying goodbye to?

Read the following statment and decide whether it is mostly true, or mostly false?

"People are doomed to see the world through a prism of their own perceptions and experiences"

Madeleine May Kunin is an American diplomat and author who once said that "We see the world through the lens of our experiences"

Do you agree with her statement? Think about your answer to question 3.

Would you say that the speaker feels as though he/she can control his/her own fate?

Select a quote from the poem and explain why it supports your answer.

To what degree do you personally believe that you can control your own fate?

"Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?"

What do these lines show regarding the speaker's feelings towards life or their current situation?

In the second stanza, we see the speaker standing alone on the beach. The person they had been speaking to is no longer with them. 

Quote from the poem to show that the speaker is grieving.

"And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand"

The golden sands in the poem symbolize two things that the poet simply cannot grasp. What are those two things?

The speaker is questioning their reality and believes not only that their days have been a dream but that perhaps their reality is in fact in someone elses dream

"O God! Can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?"

Comment on the speaker's statements above. They are making use of rhetorical questions, meaning that they are not expecting a response.

Who is the speaker crying out to? What are they asking that person?

"O God!" is repeated twice in the poem. Their plea to God create a feeling of ...

The idea of "a dream within someone elses dream" refers to who

In your own words summerise what question the speaker is asking and describe the events within the two stanzas of the poem.

Poetic Devices

"You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream"

The d sound is repeated across two lines. The repetition of this sound links the word "days" to "dream" and is an example of alliteration. How does this support the message of the poem?

Find another example of Alliteration in the poem.

Dont forget to explain what the figure of speech is and then how the quote is an example of that figure of speech.

Explain what Apostrophe is in terms of Literature.

Visit the following website if you can't remember: https://literarydevices.net/apostrophe/

Identify an example of Apostrophe within the poem. Don't forget to explain how/why it is an example of Apostrophe.

Identify the Poetic device or figure of speech used in the following

"One from the pitiless wave?"

Don't forget to explain what the figure of speech is and then how the quote is an example of that figure of speech.

Identify an example of metaphor within the poem.

Don't forget to explain what the figure of speech is and then how the quote is an example of that figure of speech.

Explain what Poe is saying in his statement above. Full sentences only please.

A Dream Within a Dream

Select one of the words and use it in a sentence. (include at least 2 discriptive words)

Thinking back to Edgar Allan Poes life, who do you think he might be saying goodbye to?

Read the following statment and decide whether it is mostly true, or mostly false?"People are doomed to see the world through a prism of their own perceptions and experiences"

Madeleine May Kunin is an American diplomat and author who once said that "We see the world through the lens of our experiences"Do you agree with her statement? Think about your answer to question 3.

Would you say that the speaker feels as though he/she can control his/her own fate? Select a quote from the poem and explain why it supports your answer.

To what degree do you personally believe that you can control your own fate?

"Yet if hope has flown awayIn a night, or in a day,In a vision, or in none,Is it therefore the less gone?"What do these lines show regarding the speaker's feelings towards life or their current situation?

Quote from the poem to show that the speaker is grieving.

"And I hold within my handGrains of the golden sand"The golden sands in the poem symbolize two things that the poet simply cannot grasp. What are those two things?

The speaker is questioning their reality and believes not only that their days have been a dream but that perhaps their reality is in fact in someone elses dream

"O God!" is repeated twice in the poem. Their plea to God create a feeling of ...

The idea of "a dream within someone elses dream" refers to who

In your own words summerise what question the speaker is asking and describe the events within the two stanzas of the poem.

"You are not wrong, who deemThat my days have been a dream"The d sound is repeated across two lines. The repetition of this sound links the word "days" to "dream" and is an example of alliteration. How does this support the message of the poem?

Find another example of Alliteration in the poem.Dont forget to explain what the figure of speech is and then how the quote is an example of that figure of speech.

Explain what Apostrophe is in terms of Literature.Visit the following website if you can't remember: https://literarydevices.net/apostrophe/

Identify an example of Apostrophe within the poem. Don't forget to explain how/why it is an example of Apostrophe.

Identify the Poetic device or figure of speech used in the following"One from the pitiless wave?"Don't forget to explain what the figure of speech is and then how the quote is an example of that figure of speech.

Identify an example of metaphor within the poem.Don't forget to explain what the figure of speech is and then how the quote is an example of that figure of speech.

Read the following statment and decide whether it is mostly true, or mostly false?

"People are doomed to see the world through a prism of their own perceptions and experiences"

Madeleine May Kunin is an American diplomat and author who once said that "We see the world through the lens of our experiences"

Do you agree with her statement? Think about your answer to question 3.

Would you say that the speaker feels as though he/she can control his/her own fate?

Select a quote from the poem and explain why it supports your answer.

"Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?"

What do these lines show regarding the speaker's feelings towards life or their current situation?

"And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand"

The golden sands in the poem symbolize two things that the poet simply cannot grasp. What are those two things?

"You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream"

The d sound is repeated across two lines. The repetition of this sound links the word "days" to "dream" and is an example of alliteration. How does this support the message of the poem?

Find another example of Alliteration in the poem.

Dont forget to explain what the figure of speech is and then how the quote is an example of that figure of speech.

Explain what Apostrophe is in terms of Literature.

Visit the following website if you can't remember: https://literarydevices.net/apostrophe/

Identify the Poetic device or figure of speech used in the following

"One from the pitiless wave?"

Don't forget to explain what the figure of speech is and then how the quote is an example of that figure of speech.

Identify an example of metaphor within the poem.

Don't forget to explain what the figure of speech is and then how the quote is an example of that figure of speech.