Page 23 - DENG202_ELECTIVE_ENGLISH_III

Elective English—III

Notes The spondees emphasise on imperative words, for example, “dream” (5), “away” (6), “day” (7),
“none” (8), “gone” (9), “shore” (13), “hand” (14), “deep” (17), “weep” (18), “seems” (23), “dream”
(24). When I dream away my day are all those memories gone? I stand upon the shore as dreams
slip beyond my reach into the deep hollows of death. I weep for what it seems—those memories
are but a dream. This poem is one of despair as specified by the stressed words of ‘gone’ (9),
‘All’ (10), ‘One’ (22), and ‘all’ (23). The reader is left with the question—through the passage of
time, are our dreams that we see or seem gone one and all?

2.9.1 Use of Literary Devices

There is a variety of literary devices used in this poem to promote the message of the poem to
the readers effectively. Like all of Poe’s poems, the impact of the poetry on the reader is more
clear and distinct. Assonance has been used in places like, in line 10 (see, seem), line 14 (hold,
hand). Personification has also been used in line 6 “hope has flown away”. Repetition is there in
line 18 “while I weep” whereas onomatopoeia has been used in line 3 “avow”. The poem also
uses metaphor is in line 24 “pitiless wave”.

Task Recite the poem The Raven in class with the help of voice modulation.

Self Assessment

Fill in the blanks:
1. Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts on …………………….

2. In The Philosophy of Composition, Poe talked about the nature of writing and the
…………………….
3. An American journalist, critic and essayist, …………………… called Poe “the poet of
unripe boys and unsound men.”
4. A Dream within a Dream was a conversation poem and published in …………………….
5. The rhyming scheme of the first stanza is …………………… and the second stanza is
…………………….

2.10 Summary

Edgar Allan Poe was a brilliant American poet, journalist, short story writer and literary
critic.
The poem A Dream within a Dream is one of the many masterpieces written by the acclaimed
writer.

Poe’s theory of literary creation is well known for two vital ideas (1) a work should create
a unity of effect on the reader to be considered successful and (2) the production of this
particular effect should not be left to the threats of accident or inspiration.
There is a psychological intensity, which is characteristic of Poe’s writings, particularly
the tales of horror that contains his well-known works. These stories include The Black Cat,
The Cask of Amontillado and The Tell-Tale Heart.

Poe influenced many following authors and is considered a precursor of key literary
movements such as symbolism and surrealism.

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