Edgar Allen Poe's poem "A Dream within a Dream" has a depressing and distressed tone. The poem describes how life slips away from us gradually, like grains of sand slipping through our fingers. Poe suggests that life is fleeting and precious, but death ultimately comes for us all like the ocean waves, washing away any memories of our existence. The poem expresses the speaker's distress at the idea that he will eventually be forgotten after death, with his life feeling meaningless like a dream.

1. Analyzing ToneStudent Model Responses

2. A Dream Within a DreamExplain the tone and the main idea of the poem. Give three details from the poem to support your response.

4. Tips for a Grade a Response Explain the main idea—the meaning of the poem.

5. Explain the tone.

6. As you explain, list specific details from the poem that support your explanation.AvoidListing details without explaining how they relate to your explanation of tone or meaning.

7. Giving fewer than 3 details to support your explanation.Edgar Allen Poe’s tone in A Dream within a Dream is very depressing. In this poem, both stanzas describe that life slips away from us like a long lost lover or a fistful of sand “creeping “through fingers.” Little by little life slips away from us like the sand. He is secretly telling us that life is precious and that we should try to hold on to it, but sometimes, death comes upon us like the surf and takes the sand of our life away with it. Poe also describes to us that, to him perhaps, that life is just a dream and death is an awakening. Poe says that, if we’re lucky, we will be remembered when we die. Otherwise the dark wave of death will come and wash away our sand, the memories and elements of our past life.