A Dream Analysis - Academic Mode

A Dream
by Edgar Allan Poe

In visions of the dark night
I have dreamed of joy departed—
But a waking dream of life and light
Hath left me broken-hearted.

Ah! what is not a dream by day
To him whose eyes are cast
On things around him with a ray
Turned back upon the past?

That holy dream—that holy dream,
While all the world were chiding,
Hath cheered me as a lovely beam
A lonely spirit guiding.

What though that light, thro’ storm and night,
So trembled from afar—
What could there be more purely bright
In Truth’s day-star?

Poem Summary, "A Dream"
Popularity of the poem "A Dream": Edgar Allan Poe, a great American writer and publisher, wrote this poem. "Dream" is one of the best poems about thoughts and hope. first published in 1827 in Tamerlane and Other Poems. The poem talks about the importance of dreams in the life of the speaker. It also illustrates how these dreams affect his life. It is also about the bitter realities of life that a person faces.
“A Dream As a Representative of Pain: Since this poem is about dreams, the speaker begins to describe a bad dream that he had the night before. He dreamed that happiness left him. He is not scared of this nightmare because he knows it will not happen. to damage his current dark and depressed life. For him, what really makes a difference is having good dreams about a happy life. Later, he expresses that he cannot happily interact with the real world around him. Everything around the speaker pulls him back into the past, where he may have experienced bouts of depression and acute pain.
As the poem progresses, he recalls the dream that he once regarded as having guided and helped him escape from the world of the miseries. He compares his dream world to the real world. The speaker also believes that the walking dreams in his life are better than those he had at night. "A dream": The dream, sadness and the challenges of life are the main themes of this poem. The speaker presents the dreams and their impact on their lives. Throughout the poem, he develops this idea that bad dreams cannot scare a person whose current life is full of misfortunes. The poem talks about the tragedies and losses that he faced in life. That's why these bad dreams don't surprise him. Surprisingly, these dreams of light and optimism disturb him.
Analysis of literary devices in “A Dream”
Literary devices are tools with which writers convey their emotions, ideas and topics in texts that appeal to the reader. Edgar Allan Poe has used various literary means to make his poems visual and engaging. Some of the most important literary means have been analyzed below.

Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds on the same line. For example, the sound of / i / in “But an awake dream of life and light” and the sound of / ee / in “Cheered me on like a beautiful ray” .
Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant tones on the same line in quick follow. For example the sound of / w / in “While the whole world is switching” .
Anaphora: It refers to the repetition of a word or phrase in the first part of some verses. For example, "the sacred dream" is repeated in the first line of the third stanza to emphasize the importance of the dream.
Consonance: The consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, for example, the sound / n / in "In visions of the dark night."
Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not end in a line break. Continues on the next line or verse. For example,
“Ah! What is not a dream per day
For the one whose eyes are cast
On the things that surround him with lightning
Regressed to the past? ”

Image: Images are used to make readers perceive things that involve their five senses. the world was reprimanding” and “A lonely spirit guiding. ”
Personification: Personification is giving human qualities to inanimate objects. For example, 'dream' in the third stanza is personified as if a dream were a spiritual teacher who can guide you.
Rhetorical Question: The rhetorical question is a sentence that is asked to get the point across. For example: “Back to the past?” And “In Truth's day star?
Symbolism: Symbolism is a use of symbols to denote ideas and qualities by giving them symbolic meanings that differ from their literal meanings. Dreams symbolize hope and sadness.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in “A Dream”
Poetic and literary means are the same, but some are only used in poetry. Here is the analysis of some of the poetic means used in this poem.

Quatrain: A quatrain is a four-line stanza borrowed from Persian poetry. Stanza is a quatrain.
Rhyming scheme: The poem follows the ABAB rhyming scheme and this pattern continues through to the End away.
Strophe: A stanza is a poetic form of a few lines. There are four stanzas in this poem, each with four lines .

“This sacred dream - this sacred dream,
While the whole world scolded,
Hath cheered me as a beautiful ray
A lonely spirit that guided.