In the poem "Harlem II," the speaker asks, "What happens to a dream deferred?" and offers several images in the form of rhetorical questions. Some examples of these images are "Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore-- and then run?... Maybe it just sags like a heavy load. Or does it explode?" These images largely say what about deferring a dream? (1 point)

Question

In the poem "Harlem II," the speaker asks, "What happens to a dream deferred?" and offers several images in the form of rhetorical questions. Some examples of these images are "Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore-- and then run?... Maybe it just sags like a heavy load. Or does it explode?" These images largely say what about deferring a dream? (1 point)
1. it's perfectly acceptable to put off your dreams until you find a better time in the future to work on achieving them  
2. it's powerfully bad and maybe even dangerous to put off your dreams until later 
3. dreams don't really matter at all, so don't bother dreaming about future possibilities 
4. Dreams are for nighttime only

GPT 3.5 · Answer

The correct answer is 2. it's powerfully bad and maybe even dangerous to put off your dreams until later. The images in the poem suggest that deferring a dream can have negative consequences, such as it drying up, festering, sagging, or even exploding.