Discussion Topic
"The Slave's Dream" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: Critical Appreciation and Themes
Summary:
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem "The Slave's Dream" explores themes of freedom, slavery, and the power of dreams. It portrays a dying slave dreaming of his past life in Africa, where he was a free and noble king. The poem contrasts the slave's current oppressive reality with his dream of liberty, highlighting the brutality of slavery. Longfellow uses vivid imagery and poetic devices to emphasize the slave's inner freedom and the ultimate release through death, critiquing the inhumanity of slavery.
What is the theme of "The Slave's Dream" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow?
Nineteenth century poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an ardent abolitionist and academic who used his work and his money to further the cause of abolition.
There is more than one theme within "The Slave's Dream" (1842). It is, of course, a dream of freedom from enslavement from a slave's perspective, but another way of looking at the poem is as a retrospective of a man's life as he lays dying. Lines 5 and 6 complete this thought:
"Again, in the mist and shadow of sleep,
He saw his Native Land."
The lines suggest that as he approached death, the slave returned to see, once more, his life before his subjugation. As he travels along western Africa's Niger River, he sees his wife and children; hears lions, hyenas, and hippopotamuses; and sees plains, ocean, and desert. His dignity and manhood are returned to him as he rides a stallion as a warrior:
"At each leap he could feel his scabbard of steel Smiting his stallion's flank."
The freedom of the forests and...
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deserts call to him and just before his death, he smiles. Death has triumphed over the profound misery of his current situation and restored to him his true identity as a man no longer subject to the lash of a whip. His body becomes the ultimate "fetter" that his soul is able to forever leave behind, as is the case of every human being, Longfellow implies.
What is a critical view of "The Slave's Dream" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow?
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's heartfelt poem "The Slave's Dream" is structured as eight sestet stanzas in alternating lines of iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter with a rhyme scheme of a b c b d b etc., varying the Italian sestet rhyme scheme of a b c a b c, in which the trimeter lines correspond with the b-position rhymes. The poetic speaker, who is not the poet himself, is narrating the slave's dream and experience in this dream vision poem.
The poem starts out by positioning the slave laying down beside his work, his tool in his hand, with the "mist and shadow of sleep" about him as he dreams of his "Native Land" where he is a beloved king, with loving wife and children, who rides on a fast horse decked in gold. The dream vision follows the king on a fast ride past landmarks of his beloved land where he smiles at lions, hyenas and the desert blast. The ending reveals that the slave is beyond the pain of the slave "driver's whip," beyond the "burning heat of day," for "Death" has "illuminated" his sleep and set his soul free.
Some of the poetic techniques (one of the two categories of poetic devices) Longfellow uses are metaphor, simile, personification, and irony. An example of metaphor is "mist and shadow of sleep." An example of simile is "like a glorious roll of drums." An example of personification is "Blast of the Desert cried aloud." An example of irony is "Death had illuminated the Land of Sleep." This is creatively ironic because death is associated in poetic convention with darkness and chains of despair, yet Longfellow sees that for the slave death is an illumination of light and a freedom of release; these are the opposite of the poetic convention.
What is your critical appreciation of "The Slave's Dream"?
It is clear that this excellent poem, above all, seeks to present the brutality of slavery by presenting us with the central image of a slave, on his plantation and dying, dreaming of his former life of liberty in Africa before he was captured and his life transformed so radically for the worse. The contrast between these two states is of course meant to highlight how terrible slavery is, as we see the slave at the beginning of the poem with "matted hair" and "buried in the sand" with a sickle in his hand. The dreams he has capture the beauty of Africa and the freedom he enjoyed as the author imagines he was some kind of African noble, striding as a "king" in his home country. He is reunited in his dreams with his "dark-eyed queen" and their children and is able to relive his freedom in amidst the beauty of Africa and her flora and fauna, which are described using excellent imagery:
At night he heard the lion roar,
And the hyena scream,
And the river-horse, as he crushed the reeds
Beside some hidden stream;
And it passed, like a glorious roll of drums,
Through the triumph of his dream.
Sound, colour, and sight are used to great effect to conjure up the dream of home in the slave's mind. Finally, the dream reaches its climax as the liberty of Africa is shouted out through a personification of the forests and deserts, making the dreamer "smile" in his sleep. However, the joy of this "return" is cut short by the final stanza, when we realise that the slave has died and his body is described as a "worn-out fetter" deserted by his soul. Longfellow in this poem therefore presents us with the brutality of slavery, evoked through the "driver's whip" and the "heat" of the day, and the lack of freedom that has been stolen from the slave. However, some critics argue that the dream Longfellow creates is a romanticised view of African life.
What are the themes in "The Slave's Dream"?
I believe that, based on the title alone, a reader would suspect that possible themes of the poem focus on slavery and dreams. As a reader works their way through the poem, those suspicions are confirmed. There is definitely a theme about slavery vs. freedom. This makes sense based on the fact that Longfellow was an outspoken abolitionist. The first and last stanzas of the poem focus on the slavery aspect of the theme. Readers witness the death of a slave, and we see the whip of the master mercilessly beating the man. The middle stanzas focus on what the slave could or would be doing back in his home country. He would be free to roam the land and live his life as he desired, and he would be blessed with being able to see his family. Alongside the slavery and freedom theme is the dreams vs. reality theme. The dying man is in the midst of a wonderful dream. He's back home with his loving family, and we get to see him happy:
With a voice so wild and free,
That he started in his sleep and smiled
At their tempestuous glee.
Unfortunately, the dream is unobtainable. The political situation won't allow his dream to be a reality, and his death puts a very real finality on the present hopelessness of enslaved people.
What is the theme of "The Slave's Dream" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow?
It is clear that this impressive poem discusses the true nature of freedom and slavery through its content. Note how the poem is built around a central contrast between the slave at the beginning in his position of chained worker, with the "ungathered rice" around him and the "sickle in his hand," and then with the same man but before his capture, as he returns in his dream to his native land. There is obviously a massive difference between the pitiful figure who lies on the sand in the first stanza and how he imagines himself back in his home, as in his dream he is able to stride "once more as a king" and is surrounded by his "dark-eyed queen" and children. He inhabits a place of freedom, as this stanza demonstrates:
The forests, with their myriad tongues,
Shouted of liberty;
And the Blast of the Desert cried aloud,
With a voice so wild and free,
That he started in his sleep and smiled
At their tempestuous glee.
Note how his home is associated with freedom and with liberty, which ironically is so very far from his present condition as a shackled slave. The last stanza points towards the tragedy of slavery, as the man dies in his dream, and his body is described as a "worn-out fetter, that the soul / Had broken and thrown away!" The poem's theme therefore points towards the inhumanity of slavery and how it deprived free people of their lives and liberty by relocating them into strange, alien lands and making them work under terrible conditions. For these slaves, freedom can only be achieved through their dreams, but ultimately only through their deaths as their souls break free.
Can you briefly explain "The Slave's Dream" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow?
In this poem, Longfellow contrasts the world of the dead slave with the world of freedom he came from.
As a slave, the man is worked to death in the hot sun under the "driver's whip," but as we experience his dying dream, he is humanized. He becomes a husband, a father, and a king. He has freedom: in fact, the forests of his homeland "shouted of liberty." His children love him and he "strides" boldly across his domain or rides a horse with golden bridle reins.
Longfellow wants readers to understand that the abject degradation of slavery is not the natural state of the black man. Slavery has been imposed on him by white society and violates who he really is. In his homeland, this man has dignity, beauty, and power.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem “The Slave’s Dream” paints the picture of an exhausted slave resting on the ground of a rice field with his “sickle” in his hand, his work unfinished. His head has been in the same place so long, his hair is covered by the sand of the field, which is a symbol for death encroaching on him. As he lays near death, he dreams of his life in his homeland before he became enslaved. His life flashes before him one final time.
When the author describes the Niger River flowing through the land, the reader learns the dying man’s homeland is Africa. The line “Once more a king he strode” indicates he was a leader in his former life before he became a slave. In his subconscious state, he hears the sounds of the “tinkling caravans” as they travel through his homeland.
As the poem progresses, he sees a woman, his “queen,” with his children who adore him. They hold him in great esteem by holding his hand, kissing him, and clutching his neck. This brings the dying man to tears. Although he is dreaming, the tears escape his eyes and flow to the ground around his head.
He saw once more his dark-eyed queen
Among her children stand;
The dream continues with him riding his horse with purpose and exhilaration. He carries his warrior’s sword as he guides his horse with “golden chains as bridle-reins.” The beautiful sight of flamingos in flight fills his view as he rides across the land to the sea.
Before him, like a blood-red flag,
The bright flamingoes flew;
The auditory imagery of the next stanza indicates what he is hearing in his dream. He hears cries of the animals, and hears himself thrashing through reeds along the river. Longfellow describes the scene as one of freedom and triumph with the “glorious roll of drums.” This tone of the slave’s dream continues with his dreams of being free. He experiences the sights and sounds of the forests and desert of his homeland. His subconscious thoughts bring a smile to his face.
And the Blast of the Desert cried aloud,
With a voice so wild and free,
That he started in his sleep and smiled
At their tempestuous glee.
Finally, he dies and no longer feels the constraints of slavery. Although he died a broken man, his soul is finally free.
For Death had illumined the Land of Sleep,
And his lifeless body lay
A worn-out fetter, that the soul
Had broken and thrown away!
What is the theme of "The Slave's Dream" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow?
There are a few themes worth noting in "The Slave's Dream."
I think the best to look at is the liberation of the slave. Under the circumstances of this particular slave, he is released from this life and passes into death. In either this state of permanent sleep or heavenly dreaming, the slave recalls his former life in Africa wherein he could be with his wife, his children, his horse, his manhood, and the freedom of the beach. The author notes the shoreline, the foliage of the forest nearby, and the power of the riding of his horse as a mighty warrior.
The theme of this poem is that slavery is bad. Specifically, it is saying that slavery is bad because of what it does to the slaves. In this poem, Longfellow is saying that slavery takes men and women who should be free and powerful and turns them into people who are neither.
In the dream that the slave has, he is both free and powerful. He is able to see himself as a king back in Africa. But in reality, because of slavery, he is so powerless that what is really happening is that he is being beaten to death.
What incidents in Longfellow's "The Slave's Dream" reflect the slave's strong desire for freedom?
I’m sure you recall that eNotes doesn’t write your assignments for you; eNotes provides you with homework help and research reference material. Having said this, the question you pose is an odd one. Two things are going on in “The Slave’s Dream.” First, there is the slave who is on the ground next to rice he should be gathering. Second, there is the slave as he remembers himself in his homeland and as he sees himself in a dream or vision of himself. In the first instance (the slave next to the rice), the “immense desire” expressed is for reunion with his family:
They clasped his neck, they kissed his cheeks,
They held him by the hand!--
A tear burst from the sleeper's lids
And fell into the sand.
One may argue that reunion can come only through freedom from slavery, but Longfellow’s language makes it clear that the slave’s thoughts--his immense desires--are focused upon his loved ones rather than being focused upon his own circumstance of slavery and his need for freedom. This positions a desire for freedom as a secondary immense desire. Further, he expresses joy at his reunion by celebrating the joys of his native land: “at furious speed he rode / Along the Niger's bank.” Here, “martial” (i.e., warlike, warrior-like) may be misleading. The end result of the “martial clank” from "his scabbard of steel” is not a battle enjoined for freedom but “the roofs of Caffre huts, / And the ocean.” These and other glories of his native land are so grand “That he started in his sleep and smiled.”
In the second instance (the man in the dream vision at home), his immense desire (“A tear burst from the sleeper's lids“) is for the touch (“They clasped his neck, they kissed his cheeks”), the feel (“at furious speed he rode”), the sight (“bright flamingoes flew”), the sound (“a voice so wild and free”) of his lost loves and homeland. One may argue correctly that the martial metaphors (e.g., “blood-red flag”) underscore the slave’s immense desire for freedom. In doing so, however, the slave’s main motive will be obscured if the desire for freedom is set forth as his overriding primary desire and motive. Longfellow’s heartbreaking words paint a clear picture that the slave’s primary immense desire is for reunion with his rightful life: freedom is a necessary requirement of attaining his immense desire--his rightful life--but his desire is not focused on freedom for freedom’s sake. In the end, with a tear shed but replaced by a smile, he is transported away from all desire to the realm where
Death had illumined the Land of Sleep,
And his lifeless body lay ....
Longfellow's poem supports the idea that the physical bondage of an individual does not necessarily dictate that their subjectivity. The slave is beaten in the poem in a subjugated context from which there is no release. There is no direct path for freedom for the slave. He must endure what bondage represents for him. Yet, the dream of his freedom, a vision in which his own subjective is freed from its external condition is one in which there is total and absolute freedom. The desire for freedom is one that cannot be denied. Even in the last moments of consciousness, the slave dreams of a world in which he is free from the clutches of the institution of slavery, free from the whip, free from another's control. It is here where Longfellow's poem is the most convincing in that it suggests that there is a subjective consciousness that can exist devoid or outside of the physical condition that surrounds it. The subjective is the real. The external is the illusion. Longfellow's poem suggests that if one is committed to their own freedom, such a desire cannot be repressed even though physical bondage envelops a person for a great deal of time.
What is the meaning and motive of the slave's dream in Longfellow's "The Slave's Dream"?
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, "The Slave's Dream," is a poem which reflects upon the moment a slave collecting rice has given up his life of hardship.
Lying next to the "ungathered rice," the slave is able to find the one place where he no longer must suffer from the "driver's whip" or the "burning heat of the day." Dreaming, the slave is able to visit his home, his wife and his family. No longer aware of the brutal heat beating down upon his back, the slave's last moments are spent with him smiling at his dream.
Essentially, the poem is speaking to both the harsh reality of slavery and the escape dreams can bring. Although the slave is seen lying on the rice he should be gathering, his dreams are allowing him to travel to a place where he can be certain to find eternal rest. No longer a slave, the man possesses "golden chains" for his horse. This imagery shows the slave to no longer be a slave; instead, he is a king (a far cry from the reality of his life). In death, brought on by the dream, the slave is able to have all he had hoped for: his family, his land, and recognition as being more than a slave. Although this was all in his mind, it was exactly what the slave needed to find comfort in his death.