Analysis of He had his Dream

Paul Laurence Dunbar 1872 (Dayton) – 1906



He had his dream, and all through life,
Worked up to it through toil and strife.
Afloat fore'er before his eyes,
It colored for him all his skies:
The storm-cloud dark
Above his bark,
The calm and listless vault of blue
Took on its hopeful hue,
It tinctured every passing beam -
He had his dream.

He labored hard and failed at last,
His sails too weak to bear the blast,
The raging tempests tore away
And sent his beating bark astray.
But what cared he
For wind or sea!
He said, 'The tempest will be short,
My bark will come to port.'
He saw through every cloud a gleam -
He had his dream.


Scheme aabbccddeE ffgghhiieE
Poetic Form Etheree  (35%)
Metre 11110111 11111101 01100111 11011111 0111 0111 01010111 111101 11100101 1111 11010111 11111101 0101101 01110101 1111 1111 11010111 111111 111100101 1111
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 578
Words 118
Sentences 7
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 10, 10
Lines Amount 20
Letters per line (avg) 23
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 227
Words per stanza (avg) 58
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

35 sec read
119

Paul Laurence Dunbar

Paul Laurence Dunbar was a seminal American poet of the late 19th and early 20th centuries Dunbar gained national recognition for his 1896 Lyrics of a Lowly Life one poem in the collection being Ode to Ethiopia more…

All Paul Laurence Dunbar poems | Paul Laurence Dunbar Books

7 fans

Discuss this Paul Laurence Dunbar poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "He had his Dream" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/28736/he-had-his-dream>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    2
    days
    2
    hours
    58
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    "Twas brillig, and the slithy toves Did gyre and gimble in the wabe."
    A Lewis Carroll
    B Dr. Seuss
    C Lord Byron
    D Shel Silverstein