A wise man once said, “motion equals emotion.” All words and phrases, regardless of whether they are spoken or written, are characterized by their motion: their meter, their rhythm. The motion created by words has the ability to bring individuals to an emotional place. In Langston Hughes’ “Dream Variations,” motion is at the core of one’s understanding of the poem itself. Throughout the poem, the speaker talks of his experience with racism as a black individual. The words appear to flow freely from his mouth and thus paint a genuine picture of the speaker’s thoughts and experiences as a black man. By manipulating the motion of his words, the speaker successfully draws readers into the darkness that plagues the average black man and instills
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The meter, or “motion,” of “Dream Variations” serves to both reflect the emotion of the speaker himself and to evoke emotions in the hearts of his audience.
In the poem, “Dream Variations,” the speaker utilizes a unique, irregular meter in order to highlight the prevalence of racism in 20th century society. “Dream Variations” beings with a regular meter, consisting predominantly of an iamb or anapest followed by an anapest. This regularity serves to develop a consistent rhythm of one or two unstressed syllables followed by a single stressed syllable, “To fling my arms wide / In some place of the sun, / To whirl and to dance / Till the white day is done” (1-4). The first and third lines, then, consist of an iamb followed by an anapest, as the second and fifth syllables of these lines are stressed. On the other hand, the second and fourth lines consist of two anapests, as the third and sixth syllables of these lines are stressed. Because the rhythmic makeup of these lines varies only slightly, the meter remains relatively constant. However, as the poem progresses, the speaker abruptly breaks this consistent rhythm, “Then rest at cool evening / beneath a tall tree / while night comes on gently, / …show more content…
The rhyme of the poem consists predominantly of end-rhymes, with the last word of every-other line rhyming with one another, “To fling my arms wide / in some place of the sun, / to whirl and to dance / Till the white day is done” (1-4). The last word of the second line - “sun” - rhymes perfectly with the last word of the fourth line - “done.” The speaker’s focus on perfect, masculine rhymes presents a feeling of constant motion and action. The fast-paced motion that the perfect rhymes create can be seen as an invitation for readers to participate in dance, as the speaker mentions himself. While the speaker includes mostly perfect rhymes, he does not use these exclusively. At the close of the first stanza, for instance, the speaker breaks the consistent rhyme scheme for the first time by including an off-rhyme, “While night comes on gently, / Dark like me— / That is my dream!” (7-9). The words “me” and “dream” are slant rhymes, as they sound quite similar but they do not rhyme perfectly with one another. Because the previous rhymes are all perfect, masculine rhymes, the slight difference between the words “me” and “dream” creates an unfamiliar, harsh sound for readers. This sudden variation in rhyme serves to emphasize the line “that is my dream.”
The meter, or “motion,” of “Dream Variations” serves to both reflect the emotion of the speaker himself and to evoke emotions in the hearts of his audience.
In the poem, “Dream Variations,” the speaker utilizes a unique, irregular meter in order to highlight the prevalence of racism in 20th century society. “Dream Variations” beings with a regular meter, consisting predominantly of an iamb or anapest followed by an anapest. This regularity serves to develop a consistent rhythm of one or two unstressed syllables followed by a single stressed syllable, “To fling my arms wide / In some place of the sun, / To whirl and to dance / Till the white day is done” (1-4). The first and third lines, then, consist of an iamb followed by an anapest, as the second and fifth syllables of these lines are stressed. On the other hand, the second and fourth lines consist of two anapests, as the third and sixth syllables of these lines are stressed. Because the rhythmic makeup of these lines varies only slightly, the meter remains relatively constant. However, as the poem progresses, the speaker abruptly breaks this consistent rhythm, “Then rest at cool evening / beneath a tall tree / while night comes on gently, / …show more content…
The rhyme of the poem consists predominantly of end-rhymes, with the last word of every-other line rhyming with one another, “To fling my arms wide / in some place of the sun, / to whirl and to dance / Till the white day is done” (1-4). The last word of the second line - “sun” - rhymes perfectly with the last word of the fourth line - “done.” The speaker’s focus on perfect, masculine rhymes presents a feeling of constant motion and action. The fast-paced motion that the perfect rhymes create can be seen as an invitation for readers to participate in dance, as the speaker mentions himself. While the speaker includes mostly perfect rhymes, he does not use these exclusively. At the close of the first stanza, for instance, the speaker breaks the consistent rhyme scheme for the first time by including an off-rhyme, “While night comes on gently, / Dark like me— / That is my dream!” (7-9). The words “me” and “dream” are slant rhymes, as they sound quite similar but they do not rhyme perfectly with one another. Because the previous rhymes are all perfect, masculine rhymes, the slight difference between the words “me” and “dream” creates an unfamiliar, harsh sound for readers. This sudden variation in rhyme serves to emphasize the line “that is my dream.”