A Dream Within a Dream By Edgar Allan Poe

Question

Take this kiss upon the brow!

And, in parting from you now, Thus much let me avow1 —

You are not wrong, who deem2

That my days have been a dream;

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

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 —

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?

O God! can I not save

One from the pitiless wave?

Is all that we see or seem

But a dream within a dream?



Footnotes:

1. Avow (verb) to assert or confess openly

2. Deem (verb) to judge or consider in a specific way

Question 1
1. The speaker parts from someone who believes the speaker's life has been lived like a dream.(1 point)
Responses

True
True

False
False
Question 2
2. In stanza 1, the speaker implies that what we see may not be real.(1 point)
Responses

True
True

False
False
Question 3
3. What is the speaker unable to keep?(1 point)
Responses

his dreams
his dreams

the sound of the ocean
the sound of the ocean

the waves
the waves

the grains of sand
the grains of sand
Question 4
4. PART A: Which sentence best describes a theme of the poem?(1 point)
Responses

It is important to hold on to your dreams.
It is important to hold on to your dreams.

Nothing in life is permanent.
Nothing in life is permanent.

Our loved ones usually leave us.
Our loved ones usually leave us.

We cannot slow the passage of time.
We cannot slow the passage of time.
Question 5
4. PART B: Which lines from the poem best support the answer to Part A?(1 point)
Responses

"Thus much let me avow — / You are not wrong, who deem" (Lines 3-4)
"Thus much let me avow — / You are not wrong, who deem" (Lines 3-4)

"Through my fingers to the deep, / While I weep — while I weep!" (Lines 17-18)
"Through my fingers to the deep, / While I weep — while I weep!" (Lines 17-18)

"And I hold within my hand / Grains of the golden sand" (Lines 14-15)
"And I hold within my hand / Grains of the golden sand" (Lines 14-15)

"O God! I cannot save / One from the pitiless wave" (Lines 21-22)
"O God! I cannot save / One from the pitiless wave" (Lines 21-22)
Question 6
5. PART A: What is the meaning of the word "vision" as used in line 8?(1 point)
Responses

a spirit
a spirit

a dream
a dream

the future
the future

a beautiful person
a beautiful person
Question 7
5. PART B: Which lines from the poem best support the answer to Part A?(1 point)
Responses

"All that we see or seem / Is but a dream within a dream." (Lines 10-11)
"All that we see or seem / Is but a dream within a dream." (Lines 10-11)

"Is it therefore the less gone?" (Line 9)
"Is it therefore the less gone?" (Line 9)

"You are not wrong, who deem / That my days have been a dream" (Lines 4-5)
"You are not wrong, who deem / That my days have been a dream" (Lines 4-5)

"Yet if hope has flown away / In a night, or in a day" (Lines 6-7)
"Yet if hope has flown away / In a night, or in a day" (Lines 6-7)
Question 8
6. This is the answer, what would be the question?

Student's Answer: In the first stanza, the speaker says goodbye to a loved one, and it seems that their goodbye stems from the narrator's lover criticizing how he lives his life: that his days seem to be like dreams. He asserts at the end of the first stanza that all "is but a dream within a dream" (Line 11). In the second stanza, the speaker stands at a beach, holding sand as it slips through his fingers. When he realizes he cannot hold on to the grains, he begins to question the assertion he made in the first stanza. He asks "Is all that we see or seem / But a dream within a dream?" in the final two lines. By questioning the same premise the speaker had established in the first stanza, Poe further emphasizes how unknowable and mysterious life is.
(1 point)
Responses

How does the tone shift from stanza 1 to stanza 2?
How does the tone shift from stanza 1 to stanza 2?

How does the division of the poem into two stanzas contribute to its meaning?
How does the division of the poem into two stanzas contribute to its meaning?

What is the central idea of stanza 1 and stanza 2?
What is the central idea of stanza 1 and stanza 2?

How does the author compare and contrast the first and second stanza?
How does the author compare and contrast the first and second stanza?
Question 9
7. Which type of poem is known for its 14 lines and a specific rhyme scheme?(1 point)
Responses

Haiku
Haiku

Sonnet
Sonnet

Limerick
Limerick

Free Verse
Free Verse
Question 10
8. What is the primary characteristic of a haiku?(1 point)
Responses

It has a rhyme scheme of ABAB
It has a rhyme scheme of ABAB

It tells a humorous story
It tells a humorous story

It consists of three lines with a 5-7-5 syllable pattern
It consists of three lines with a 5-7-5 syllable pattern

It has no set structure
It has no set structure
Question 11
9. Which type of poem is typically written to praise or glorify a person, place, or thing?(1 point)
Responses

Elegy
Elegy

Haiku
Haiku

Sonnet
Sonnet

Ode
Ode
Question 12
10. What is the poetic structure of the following poem?

There was an Old Man with a beard,
Who said, "It is just as I feared!
Two Owls and a Hen,
Four Larks and a Wren,
Have all built their nests in my beard!"

(1 point)
Responses

Free Verse
Free Verse

Ballad
Ballad

Sonnet
Sonnet

Limerick

Answer 1

Here are the answers to your questions:

Question 1: True
Response: True

Question 2: True
Response: True

Question 3: the grains of sand
Response: the grains of sand

Question 4 (Part A): Nothing in life is permanent.
Response: Nothing in life is permanent.

Question 5 (Part B): "Through my fingers to the deep, / While I weep — while I weep!" (Lines 17-18)
Response: "Through my fingers to the deep, / While I weep — while I weep!" (Lines 17-18)

Question 6 (Part A): a dream
Response: a dream

Question 7 (Part B): "You are not wrong, who deem / That my days have been a dream" (Lines 4-5)
Response: "You are not wrong, who deem / That my days have been a dream" (Lines 4-5)

Question 8: What is the central idea of stanza 1 and stanza 2?
Response: What is the central idea of stanza 1 and stanza 2?

Question 9: Sonnet
Response: Sonnet

Question 10: It consists of three lines with a 5-7-5 syllable pattern
Response: It consists of three lines with a 5-7-5 syllable pattern

Question 11: Ode
Response: Ode

Question 12: Limerick
Response: Limerick

Feel free to ask if you have more questions or need further assistance!