A Dream Within a Dream
E37993
"A Dream Within a Dream" is a lyric poem by Edgar Allan Poe that meditates on the illusory nature of reality and the inevitable loss of time and love.
Statements (46)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
lyric poem
→
poem → |
| author |
Edgar Allan Poe
→
|
| centralQuestion |
Whether life is real or only a dream
→
|
| concerns |
boundary between dream and reality
→
human helplessness before time → |
| countryOfOrigin |
United States
→
|
| firstLine |
Take this kiss upon the brow!
→
|
| focusesOn |
inability to hold onto time
→
inevitability of loss → |
| form |
two-stanza poem
→
|
| genre |
lyric poetry
→
|
| hasEmotionalCore |
anguish over impermanence
→
|
| hasImagery |
sand slipping through fingers
→
waves and shore → |
| hasNarrativePerspective |
first-person speaker
→
|
| hasNotableLine |
All that we see or seem / Is but a dream within a dream.
→
|
| hasSubject |
emotional suffering
→
memory and loss → philosophical reflection on reality → |
| influenced |
later symbolist poetry
→
modern interpretations of dream-reality themes → |
| isFrequentlyAnthologized |
true
→
|
| language |
English
→
|
| literaryMovement |
Romanticism
→
|
| literaryPeriod |
American Romantic period
→
|
| meter |
irregular meter
→
|
| partOf |
Edgar Allan Poe bibliography
→
|
| period |
19th century literature
→
|
| refrain |
All that we see or seem / Is but a dream within a dream.
→
|
| rhymeScheme |
irregular rhyme scheme
→
|
| theme |
ephemerality of human experience
→
existential doubt → grief → illusory nature of reality → loss of love → transience of time → |
| tone |
contemplative
→
despairing → melancholic → |
| usesLiteraryDevice |
alliteration
→
imagery → metaphor → rhetorical question → |
| usesSymbol |
grains of sand
→
ocean shore → |
Referenced by (1)
| Subject (surface form when different) | Predicate |
|---|---|
|
Edgar Allan Poe
→
|
notableWork |