Question

Longing
by Paul Laurence Dunbar

Away

Away, away I would go if I could,
Perhaps to an overgrown sun-dapple wood;
Away, away I would fly in a flash,
If I thought peace awaited under a towering ash.

Away, away you would wish me go too,
If only the pain of my staying still was known to you;
Away, away you would bid me farewell,
And on my wellbeing, you’d never again dwell.



"Longing" by Paul Laurence Dunbar

Question
Use the poem to answer the question.

In 3–5 sentences, use effective reasoning to explain a conclusion you can draw from the structure of “Away.” Base your conclusion in part on the structure of the poem.

(4 points)

Answer 1

The poem’s two parallel stanzas and repeated opening phrase “Away, away” show that the speaker’s desire to leave is urgent and consuming and then becomes tangled with feelings of rejection. The repetition emphasizes a single, pressing longing, while the stanza break marks a shift from imagining a peaceful destination (sun-dapple wood, towering ash) to imagining how others would react (you would bid me farewell). This structural progression—from inward yearning to outward expectation of being sent away—supports the conclusion that the speaker’s longing grows into a sense of isolation and exile.