(Poem #665) Dreams Here we are all, by day; by night we're hurled By dreams, each one, into a several world. |
Epigrams, even more than other poems, demand an absolute perfection of design and execution if they are to work at all. One syllable out of place, and the entire effect is ruined... conversely, the very best examples of the genre seem to have lasted forever, so naturally do the words, sounds and meanings fit together. Herrick's couplet on dreams falls in the latter category [1]. Technical mastery apart, I like epigrams (whether they be by Horace or Hafiz, Blake or Basho) for the same reason I like haiku and other minimalistic forms of verse - so much of the interpretation is left to the reader; the poetry expands in the mind's eye. Again, Herrick's poem is an excellent example thereof: the image of being "hurled" (no other word will do) into "several worlds" by dreams offers limitless possibilities to the reader willing to explore its depths... thomas. [1] As does most of his work; as I've commented before, his poetry is possessed of "a remarkable felicity of rhythm and rhyme". See the links section below for examples. [Minstrels Links] The Minstrels archive, http://www.cs.rice.edu/~ssiyer/minstrels, has the following poems by Robert Herrick: Delight in Disorder, Poem #332 The Night Piece, to Julia, Poem #398 The Hag, Poem #593 The second poem above has a brief biography, and links to some other of his pieces.
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you are completely wrong to say that
" the image of being "hurled" (no other word will do) into "several worlds" by dreams "
It is markedly NOT "several worlds", but each "into A several WORLD." The beauty and crux of the poem is the use of the adjective "several" to modify a singular noun. The single noun is split by "several" just as the singular "world" we inhabit contains many smaller worlds of dream. Yes?
Several is the opposite of collective
The word several in this case does not mean multiple worlds , but one of many seperate worlds (think of 'to sever' or split apart something). So although we all share one world by day, at night we are each in our own, private world in our dreams.
wow
alllllll yall need a lif e...get off this wack ass web site.SMH
She loves me-loves me not.
My hands I pick
and having broken my fingers
fling away.
So the first daisy-heads
one happens to flick
are plucked,
and guessing,
scattered into May.
Let a cut and shave
reveal my grey hairs.
Let the silver of the years
ring out endlessly !
Shameful common sense -
I hope, I swear -
Will never come
to me.
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