In "Dreams," the poem presented below, Langston Hughes promotes dreams.
Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.
1. Summarize the poem meanings. Do you agree with it? Why or why not?
2. What literary devices does Langston Hughes use? How do these devices uphold the poem's meaning, form, mood, or tone? Must analyze at least 2 devices.
3. What are you personal reactions to the poem? Why would Hughes provoke those emotions in a reader? Does he critique, warn, or celebrate something? Explain.
4. Describe your personal dreams, including professional, personal, and financial goals. Consider immediate goals (like college) and future goals (like career and marriage). Be as specific as you can. (At least 3 paragraphs)
5. What steps will you take now and in the future to accomplish these goals? (3 paragraphs)
Homework: Read other responses to question 3 and 4. Write a paragraph that considers the similarities and differences between students' various responses. Describe any common goals found and analyze why they seem universal. Describe differences found. Are there any trends apparent? Consider gender, creed, and age. (2 paragraphs)
127 comments:
1. Langston Hughes' poem means that without some type of a dream or aspiration, life sucks. I don't agree with it, I think that's a very pessimistic outlook on life. Someone could certainly lead an exciting and fulfilling life without any type of dream in mind.
1. The meaning of this poem is that without dreams your lifeless. dreams give you that image of what you hope to accomplish.without that your nothing, you have no goals and nothing to accomplish your life is frozen. you cant do anything because you dont really know what to do.
Ginny,
How does someone lead an exciting life if they have no direction? They just stumble upon happiness? Please explain.
2. Hughes uses metaphors as a device. He compares life without a dream to a 'broken-winged bird', or to 'a barren field frozen with snow'. These solemn comparisons uphold the tone of the poem by reminding the reader that unless they have a dream, and they keep that dream in mind and don't let it get away from them, they will lead a horrible, empty life.
Langston is trying to say that without a dream or a goal, there is no point. I do agree with this becasue without and inspiration, how can u accomplish anything in your life, or be motivated at all?
1. The poem means that life without dreams is pointless. Life would be hopeless without dreams, dreams give people the faith that there are better a better life on the horizon. Dreams give life purpose and without purpose what are we living for?
I agree with this poem. I belive life would be meaningless with out dreams.
1. Langston Hughes is saying through his poem that without dreams your life is meaningless. I do agree with what Langston is claiming, because if you dont have anything to look forward to or motivate you, your life becomes pointless.
Ginny,
Spot on for question 2. Good job!
Well just because someone isn't working towards an ultimate goal doesn't make their life meaningless. Maybe somebody doesn't know what they want to achieve in life, and they settled for a mundane job just to get by, except they do a lot of charity work or volunteer. That could qualify as a fulfilling way to live. Or maybe, despite not having a dream in mind, they have a good group of friends and family and do fun, exciting things with them.
1+2) The meaning of this poem is hold on to your dreams because without dreams you will have no motivation in your life. Without dreams you have nothing to strive for. I agree with this because if you do not have any dreams what are you working for in life? Langston Hughes uses metaphors and imagery to form the tone of the poem. He uses metaphors like "Life is a broken-winged bird" to explain what life would be like without dreams. Hughes also uses imagery such as "Life is a barren field frozen with snow". This gives me the image of an abandoned field that can no longer be farmed because it is frozen with snow. This makes the tone feel kind of dreary and dim showing how life would be without dreams.
3. I feel pretty indifferently about this poem. It's pretty pedestrian, there isn't really anything extraordinary about it that grabs my attention. I also think that if Hughes was urging someone to hold fast to a dream, the tone shouldn't be negative.
Hughes might have made th poem negative to show what life without a dream is like. He warns of a life without a dream by writing a dreary poem about it, so as to let others know they'll be dreary without a dream.
Ginny,
But isn't having a family a goal? A good group of friends? Volunteering?
I agree, a person's goal in life does not have to be professional. But, all the personal things you mentioned that could bring happiness are also goals. People don't simple stumble into a perfect family or a rewarding volunteer opportunity. That is where I fail to understand your point...
Hughes uses metaphors throughoutthe poem. The metaphors uphold the poem by comparing the depressing image of a "broken winged bird" or "barren feild frozen by snow" to show how depressing life can be without a dream
1. This poem means that you should always have dreams, because if you let them get away from you, your life has less purpose and is empty. I agree with this because if you don't set goals for yourself, you won't have any motivation to reach them and succeed.
2. Langston Hughes uses metaphors in his poem. In the line "Life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly" shows life without goals being compared to a broken-winged bird, whos purpose is to fly, but can't. Hughes also uses imagery to set the mood of the poem. At the end he describes a barren field covered in frozen snow, which makes the mood cold, dark and lonley.
3. When I read the poem I felt upset at first, because of the mood and tone and how sad it seemed. After reading it over, I realized that it's a motivational poem because it tells you what can happen if you let you dreams slip away from you, which would make you want to keep your goals and dreams in mind. Hughes wants readers of his poem to become aware and motivated of their dreams.
Ryan,
"Without dreams you have nothing to strive for."
Very well put.
1.Langston suggests in his poem that a life without dreams is meaningless. Dreams make you strive for something better, and without them you will stay in a bad place. I agree with this because dreams show you the difference between what your life is and what you want your life to be.
2.Langston uses literary devices such as metaphors “life is a broken-winged bird” and imaginary, “Life is a barren field frozen with snow” this makes the poem seem dim and send the message that if you don’t dream then your life will be meaningless.
Anna,
A very complex emotion response! I agree; the poem does raise a mixture of emotions. Well done.
1.
Langston Hughes’ poem is about keeping your dreams, because without them life is meaningless and dull. I agree with Hughes because without dreams a person has no hope or goal that they are striving for, making trying at all pretty pointless.
2.
Hughes uses hyperbole and metaphor. These devices (especially the metaphors) help to set up the almost melancholy tone of the poem, despite Hughes’ intentions of making this sound hopeful. The devices are also crucial to the form of the poem in setting up the “hold to dream“ line and then hyperbole/metaphor line. The poem is set up so that almost every third line is a metaphor/hyperbole.
3.
My personal reaction was that this poem sounded kind of sad and even almost hopeful. Hughes provoked these feelings in order to stir some kind of pensive thought within the reader so they would think about how meaningful dreams really are, and to give them hope and meaning.
3) Personally I agree with Langston Hughes because without dreams a persons life would be very boring. Hughes provoked those emotions because he wants the reader to think about their personal goals and dreams. He wants people to understand striving to achieve goals and dreams is the way people accomplish things in their lives. he warns that without dreaming for something life is pointless like " a broken-winged bird."
2. The literary devices that Hughes uses are 1. Metaphor- when he compares that life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly, because that’s were he sets the mood of how important it is to have dreams that way you can have a look on life. 2. Hughes uses imagery throughout this poem to really show how important dreams are. Trough his imagery he relates dreams to death mostly. In doing this he shows how dreams are your life they set up your future and without them you have nothing to look forward to.
2. Langston Hughes uses metaphor to discribe what life would be life without dreams. This device shows just how vital dreams are to people of the world today. Imagery is also used throughout the poem to show how important dreams are to peopls future and being successful.
2. Langston Hughes uses metaphor to discribe what life would be life without dreams. This device shows just how vital dreams are to people of the world today. Imagery is also used throughout the poem to show how important dreams are to peopls future and being successful.
3. My personal reaction to the poem is that I think Hughhes is completely correct. A person needs dreams in their life....to be contiuned?
1. The meaning of the poem is that you should hold onto your dreams and not let them go, because if you lose sight of your dreams then life will have no purpose. I agree with Hughes, because without dreams a person has no more hope and will be unsure of what to do with their life.
2. Hughes uses metaphor and imagery in his poem. The use of metaphors in the poem helps the reader further understand the meaning that Hughes wanted to put out in his poem. He also uses imagery in the poem to help the reader visualize the meaning. I think that Hughes was trying to be hopeful, but at the same time, warning people of the dangers of losing sight of your dreams.
3. My personal reactions to the poem, was that it was a kind of sad. I think Hughes is trying to envoke thought within the reader and he is trying to warn people of the effect of losing sight of your dreams. He wanted to give them hope and stir up different emotions within the people.
1 The poem basicly just means that without dreams life is pointless and empty, I don't think that's true because sometimes you just don't have any goals in mind and you enjoy life anyways.
2 He uses metaphors& personification. It had a sort of melancholy mood/ tone. He uses metaphors when he compares having no dreams to an empty feild and personification when he says life can fly.
3 I think the poem is a bit depressing and pessimistic. I think he was trying to warn people about not having any goals or dreams.
Hughes' poem states that if we give up on our dreams, our lives will never take off, like the bird with broken wings. I do't wholly agree with this poem, as dreams are plans and life never turns out the way it is planned (which isn't necessarily a bad thing. However, we should always strive, at least.
Hughes means in his poems to hold on to your dreams and to pursue them all your life. Without them , we loose our way and find ourselves in a void full of emptiness or as he puts it "a barren filed frozen with snow."
1) Hughes' poem claims that dreams make up ones life. That dreams are what make people go forward in life. If someone has a dream, it can become a goal, something they would work for.
I agree with this because having goals, no matter how short term or long term act as movitation for people. They can get threm through the day or through several years, but never the less they are what make people go.
I agree with this poem because it is very true, people need dreams and goals to give meaning to their life.
1) The meaning of this poem is to motivate your life by using dreams. Dreams push you that extra step to achieving greatness. I agree with the poem. I believe you need dreams to help you achieve your goals in life.
2) Langston Hughes uses metaphors in the poem when he uses "Life is a broken-winged bird" to show what life is like without dreams. Imagery is another device used in the poem to show how dreams can help you become successful.
1.The poems main meaning is if people don’t dream, or set goals in life, then their lives won’t be lived to the fullest potential. Yes, I do agree with this because you’re the only one who can make something of your life. You need to dream big in order to live the life you want to live.
2) Hughes uses metaphor in his poem.He compares life to a barren field and to a broken winged bird. Both of these things are useless, wich backs up his argument that without dreams life is meaningless.
Hughes uses various literary devices such as metaphors and personification.
Metaphor is used when he compares life to a broken winged bird or a barren field. He uses personification in the way he writes about dreams dying, as if they were human.
1.)The poem means that without dreams you no longer have life. If you dont have any dreams to look forward too then what is the purpose of life.I agree with this poem because dreams are all that people can look forward to, dreams help people to strive for happiness and creates a purpose for life.
2.)Langston Hughes uses imaginary to set up the poem and when he describes the feild, and uses metaphor by sayin about the broken winged bird. By give details of the feild it helps people picture it and the metaphor compares it to something that everyone can understand.
3.) This poem is kid of sad because it says how if you have dreams then there is nothing to life, but the overall message that dreams are important to life is happy, and makes me think of what i want to be in future. He warns that you need to hold on to your dreams.
3)My personal reactions are that i agree with Hughes because he is right. Dreams are needed in ones life to become successful.
3)I feel very indifferently to the poem, withthe exception that I am not all that impressed by the poem. It seems a bit thoughtless.
I doubt that this reaction was exactly what Hughes was looking for when he wrote this.
He mainly critiques those who have no dreams or expectations for themselves and warns of the emptiness that such an approach to life may yield.
Aislinn,
Bravo!!!!
"Hughes uses metaphor in his poem.He compares life to a barren field and to a broken winged bird. Both of these things are useless, wich backs up his argument that without dreams life is meaningless."
1) The poem means that if people don’t dream their life will be dull. It means that dreams will help you succeed and if you don’t dream then you won’t go anywhere in life. I agree with this because if people don’t dream then they won’t know what they want to do when they are older and won’t have hope of being successful.
2) Hughes uses metaphors the line "Life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly"; it compares life without goals to a broken-winged bird. He also uses imaginary with the line “Life is a barren field frozen with snow”. This sends the message that without dreaming your life will be empty and insignificant.
Hughes' uses metaphor and sympathy(??) to appeal to readers. The metaphor for the bird illustrates that life is something that should have the ability to fly, but may not depending on the bird. The metaphor about the frozen tundra shows how empty life can be. The sympathy in this poem, I feel, are in the words "if/when dreams die/go". These statements make me think that the writer of this poem was personally vicimized by a life without dreams or that they were close with someone who was.
3. I found this poem very wistful. Even though I don't totally agree with the pessimism, I now feel an obligation to spend my life the way this guy didn't. I don't know; is that weird??
My personal reaction was that the poem was sort of dark and gloomy.But i think it had to be so Hughes could get his message across to the reader. The poem was to evoke the feeling that life really is gloomy without dreams. The poem is basically just a warning of what life is like with no direction.
2. Langston Hughes used devices such as metaphors and personification. He stated that, “Life is a broken- winged bird.” This is a metaphor. He is comparing life without dreams to a bird without wings. Also, he said “Life is a barren field frozen with snow.” This is another metaphor comparing when you let go of your dreams. Hughes is showing that life without dreams, is meaningless, and you can’t succeed.
Brittanee,
imaginary? You mean imagery?
Brittanee,
imaginary? You mean imagery?
1) The poem is basically saying without dreams life is worthless. Life has no meaning without having dreams because you have nothing to work towards, nothing to strive to accomplish. I agree with this poem because it makes sense. Someone with no amibition or dreams of becoming better is totally complacent. They aren't going to strive to better themselves, therefore their life doesn't have meaning.
2)Langston Hughes uses analogy when he says that "Life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly" and "Life is a barren field frozen with snow". He uses a narrative hook because when a person starts to read the poem they will continue to read it. They will continue to read it because everyone has a desire or dream.
The universal theme of the poem is useful because most people have a dream that they'd like to fulful. These devices uphold the tone of the poem because it is very serious, and hopeful.
3) I think this is a very moivational poem. It is giving people a reason to dream. The purpose of the poem is to give people hope that their dreams aren't pipe dreams, and are attainable.
Brittanee,
"By give details of the feild it helps people picture it and the metaphor compares it to something that everyone can understand."
Interesting insight. Take it further....Why would Hughes use everyday, almost simplistic objects in poem?
3. My personal reaction to the poem was that I agree with Hughes. This poem is a warning. Hughes is trying to get the point across that if you don’t set goals for yourself; your life will become nothing.
Maria,
Can you explain in more detail the narrative hook Hughe uses. Thanks...
3) My personal reactions to the poem are that without dreaming someone’s life would be sad. He provokes these emotions so people will dream instead of having an insignificant life. He warns people that if you do not dream your life will be empty and unsuccessful.
1.One of the meanings of the poem is that without dreams your life will be pointless. Dreams give you something to live for and something to try for every day. I agree with the poem because if you didn’t have a dream then you would have no motivation in your life to try harder. Dreams are an important part in making ones life successful.
2.Hughes uses personification in his poem when he says “for if dreams die”; dreams can’t really die so he is giving a characteristic to dreams to make them mean more to ones life. This personification also shows the mood of the story because when a person is dreamless they will feel sad like when someone dies. He also uses a metaphor to compare life to a broken-winged bird. He is comparing life to a broken-winged bird when some ones dreams are ruined. This upholds the meaning of the poem because when someone doesn’t have dreams they can’t soar through life and when a bird’s wings are broken their ability to soar is destroyed.
3.At first Hughes poem seems depressing because the second line is talking about shattered dreams but really Hughes is just trying to make a point. After I read the whole thing I realized that Hughes was trying to be very motivational. Hughes is trying to prove to the reader that you need to be protective of your dreams and never let them go or you won’t accomplish the things you want to do in life. Hughes is teaching the reader a lesson about the dreams and the opportunities that come along with having dreams but if you don’t have dreams and act upon them then life will be nothing but a “barren field” as Hughes says in his poem.
Briana,
Very well put!
"I agree with the poem because if you didn’t have a dream then you would have no motivation in your life to try harder."
1. Langston Hughes poem means that if you don't hold on to your dreams they'll eventually fade away. When dreams fade away there is nothing to look forward to so your life gets meaningless. I do agree with Hughes because life is meaningless without following through with your dreams.
2. Hughes' uses literary devices such as metaphors when he says "Life is a broken-winged bird" and "Life is a barren field". He also uses personification when he says dreams are something that can die. They uphold the meaning of the poem because he's making it seem like dreams are something that are real, not just images or thoughts. It makes the tone depressing in a way because that's what life would be like without dreams.
3. I agree with Hughes because life would be pointless without dreams. Without following through with dreams you have nothing to look forward to in life. The poem makes you think about what could happen if you let your dreams slip away. If they slip away life would be pointless.
Briana,
Great answer to question #2 and #3.
1. The poem means that if you don't take advantage of life as it comes it will pass you by and all your chances and opportunities will slip past you. If you do not have dreams or goals you won't have anything to work or try for. Dreams and goals give people hope for a worthy life to live and by motivating yourself you know that you aren't worthless. Yes i agree with this poem because everyone needs to set a goal or dream for them self in order to give life a meaning and value.
2. Langston uses metaphor to show the comparison that if you don't have a dream, life is like a broken-winged bird. This device upholds the poem's mood because it is saying that with no dreams you have nothing to accomplish and be happy for. The tone is dim and slow ecause without dreams time will seem worthless. Langston uses imagery when he says "Life is a barren field, frozen with snow." This describes the mood and tone as lonely and dark.
3.My personal reactions to this poem are that I believe what he is saying is true. You should not wait around when you have perfect opportunities in front of you. Don't let your dreams pass you by. This poem makes me feel like i have to have determination and motivation to accomplish what i want in life. Langston would provoke these emotions in a reader because he wants to let people know that life is short and that you should make every part and day worth it. He warns people that they should have a dream so that they can follow up on it throughout their life. He wants to show them that having a path set out for them is easier and more efficient then not doing anything at all.
Sam,
Great insight!
"He also uses personification when he says dreams are something that can die. They uphold the meaning of the poem because he's making it seem like dreams are something that are real, not just images or thoughts."
4.My personal goals are to go to college and accomplish and be successful with want i want to do.I also might want to play softball in college. I want to study nutrition or criminal law so i can help people and make their lives better. That's one good feeling to know you can make someone happy and feel good about themselves. I also want to get married and have two children. When i get a home I will also get a cat and a dog since i grew up with these two types of pets. I want my home to be average size with a big enough backyard so my kids and dogs can play. I want to live in a small and safe neighborhood. I don't like the city areas. I want to have good money so I can make my children's childhood memorable.
5. One step i will take now to accomplish these things in the future is to get a job in the summer so i can save up money for a car and things that i will need in college. As for college, I will start visiting some to see which ones i like best and in which environment i will be most successful and comfortable with. In the future I will take on more responsibilities that come with growing into an adult. I would like to get differt experiences with different jobs. I will also keep myself active instead of being lazy because when you're an adult there is no time to be lazy.
Cara,
Good comment!
"Dreams and goals give people hope for a worthy life to live and by motivating yourself you know that you aren't worthless. "
4 I would like to go to a college someday and learn about something to make a career out of. I'd like to be financially stable and be able to afford things for entertainment/ enjoyment purposes. Someday I'd like to have a house of my own and no children. The money I save by never having any children will go towards things like a pool and vacations. Maybe I'd have a pet, probably not. They kind of smell bad. I'd like to live in Canada for a few years, mainly for the maple syrup. After the age of 45 I will stop doing dishes and just throw away all the dishware I use. I will then set up an at-home daycare that never has any customers but techinically I'm still employed. I plan to then procede to go on many cruises during this time. After about five years of that I will open a small cafe and sell coffee and small sandwiches for about 10 years. After this I shall leave my shop to one of my younger siblings, and go on a world wide voyage of self discovery and learn how to fly a plane. When I return I will dedicate the remainder of my years to cleaning up litter on a cross-country road trip.
5 Steps I can take to accomplish these goals are things like do well in school. Apply to many colleges. Be careful with my money. I should probably get a job. to be continued...
1. The meaning of the poem is that goals are portrayed through dreams and without them we would be lifeless. I agree with this because without dreams we would have nothing to live for because we would have nothing left to accomplish.
2. Hughes uses a metaphor when he says that without dreams life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly. He compares life to a broken winged bird because without dreams life would be pointless. He also uses imagery to set the mood by saying without dreams life is a barren field frozen with snow. This sets the mood by making the reader feel lonely and sad because that is how we would feel without dreams.
3. At first the poem is sad because it makes the reader realize that without dreams there would be no meaning in life and it is scary because we have no way of controlling if we will have dreams or not. Hughes warns the reader that if we dont have dreams anymore, there will be not point in living because dreams are so important and it is important to hold on to them.
1. This quote means that if you don’t hold on to your dreams they will slip away, because when your dreams slip away there is no point in life. It takes away what you your goals are, and what you thrive to accomplish. When dreams are absent, there is nothing to look forward to.
2. Langston uses personification when he compares dreams to something that can die and move. Imagery is used in the line “frozen with snow” to set the setting. Simile is used when “Life is a broken-winged bird” and “Life is a barren field”.
They uphold the poems meaning because the author is comparing dreams and life to something you can grasp a hold of, because dreams should be something you ultimately want to “have” literally. Therefore the author makes it seem as if you can actually hold a dream in your hands.
These images uphold the mood because the reader will feel as if they are nothing without their dreams. The author uses cold words such as frozen and snow, and barren field to cause the mood of the reader to be lifeless, sad, helpless, cold, lonely, and even useless.
3. Personally I think the poem is quite accurate, because without dreams there is nothing to look forward to in life. However I felt is was a little too extreme and pressured a cold and negative feeling on how life will become extremely depressing.
Cara,
"This poem makes me feel like i have to have determination and motivation to accomplish what i want in life."
Langston Hughes was African American during the first half of the 20th century. Why would this be an important message to him and other African Americans during this time?
4. As a Junior in High School, I have many dreams. Including professional, personal, and financial goals I plan to make something of myself in this world. As Senior Year and even college is fast approaching, I'm reminded daily of the necesity of preparing for the future. I don't know what I want to do yet, but I know that whatever I do I want it to be something that I love and I want to have a job that won't stress me out and that I look forward to going to each day. As for the college that I want to go to, I would like to go to maybe Eastern Univeristy or Rowan. I would like to be able to stay at the college I go to and get a dorm, but due to financial concerns I'm probably going to still be home as I attend college. I'm going to start college as soon as my Senior year ends, and even though I'm really scared I'm really excited too.
As for financial goals, I'd like to be fairly stable. Being filthy rich doesn't matter to me at all, but as long as I can support my family easily that would be awesome. In the future, I'd like to be married with kids living out of New Jersey and maybe in some area along the East Coast, North or Sounth.
I have a lot of personal goals. As a teenager, I'm not done forming into who I'm meant to be in the world. None of us can really say we know for sure who and where we'll be, the people we'll meet, and that's a fact that amazes me. I don't want to be the same as everyone else, I don't want to be just a name and number. I don't want to be the kind of person you can just stereotype and fit into a certain catagory of these kinds of people or those. I also have goals of traveling Europe some day, and I also want to go to Disney World to see Epcot again (random!).
5. There's a lot of steps I'm going to have to take in order to accomplish my goals. It all really started when I entered High School, keeping my grades up in order to get into a good college. For financial and carrer success, it's important that I keep my grades up so I can get good education.
Also, I'm going to stay true to myself and hold onto my faith in God, as well as trust in my friends and family and love them to the ends of the earth. We all need give/recieve support to/from eachother, especially at such a weird time for us not only in school but in national and even internationall events.
In the future, I won't do much unenesary spending to save money. Also, I'll always stay educated on world affairs, especially if I want to travel around eventually.
4. "Describe my personal dreams."
I don't feel particularly comfortable with sharing so I'm going to *attempt* being anonymous.
Right now I am actually kind of worried about my future, and my dreams are kind of up and down. Because of a single class I have difficulty with, my GPA is affected by it. I guess my immdiate dream would be to get a B+ in Chemistry and in turn have at least an A- for my junior year grade. I would love to be able to get into Rutgers, though I know it is a state school and therfore very competitive.
I am hoping to major in English or journalism in college, as I'd like to be a writer/journalist. I would also like to minor in psychology.
When it comes to marriage and kids...meh. I want kids, but a marital commitment is optional, because I would really like to adopt a baby from a third world country.
So those are my "dreams," or goals or whatever you want to call them.
4. I'm not sure what my personal dreams are. I would definitely like to go to college, but at this point I don't know where. I think I want to major in business, except I have no idea what I want to do after college. It might be fun to open up some type of establishment.
Finacially, I just want to be able to afford a place to live and food to eat. Being very well off would be nice but not completely necessary. I would like to be able to buy nice things but it's not the end of the world if I don't have the money too.
As far as marriage and children go, I have no idea if I want that. Both weddings and kids are expensive and loud.
I guess I'll just kind of go with the flow and see where I end up. I'm sure I'll be satisfied with where ever I end up.
4. My goals currently are getting good grades, doing well in sports, and things like that that everyone else dreams. One of my goals is to get better at tennis so that I can play in college. Also I want to become a better writer and less of a procrastinator.
My personal future dreams include getting into a college that I love, eventually getting a good job, and ultimately having a family with three kids. I would like to get a job that I love but one that also pays well so I can support my children just as my parents have supported me. My dream job would be a nutritionist to help people be healthy since America is turning in to a fast food place and also so I can lead my children and husband on a healthy life style.
I would like to deal with my career first before settling down and getting married because I do not just want to be a stay at home mom, I want to best of both worlds. I hope to accomplish all of these things in my life.
5. Some steps I could take to reach my goals: achieve good grades in school. That's basically all I know at this point. If I do well in school, I can get accepted to a college I want to go too.
I guess getting a job so I can start saving money for college would be a good step to take.
In the future, after college, some steps I could probably take would be to secure myself a job and start making money and all that fun stuff. After that I can work on my whole 'opening an establishment' plan.
Amelia,
I love your humor. Your wit makes me laugh out loud!
5) It seems to me that when it comes right down to it, we all want generally the same thing. To be something, to have a fruitful life that we can both enjoy and be proud of. Some of us ask for more of ourselves in life than others, but these expectations get us all to the same place don't they?
Unless you're Amelia and then it gets you to picking up litter on a cross country road-trip.
Anonymous,
"Right now I am actually kind of worried about my future, and my dreams are kind of up and down."
Thank you for sharing. You expressed very beautifully and succinctly a complex idea that we will be exploring during our American Dream unit: worry of the future. What a thoughtful insight!
5. The steps that I will take now are continuing to get good grades and working hard in school. Also to get a job to have work experience and make money so I will get used to paying for my own things, as I will have to do in college and after that for the rest of my life. I will stay focused in school so I will have a good work ethic to prepare me for college work.
Other steps that I will take are saving up my money while I am in college so I can do things when I get out without having a debt loan hanging over my shoulders. I hope to not be in college for too long though since my sister didn’t know what she wanted to do so she was in college for 8 years and regretted being in it that long.
More steps that I currently take that are preparing me for the future is babysitting so I know how to handle kids for when I have them of my own. Having kids of my own will be very different than babysitting but at least I will have some kind of experience with children unlike some people. By doing all of these things I hope that they will prepare me for the future so I can achieve all of my dreams.
3. My personal reaction to the is that it is true. Langston is correct in saying that life has no point without dreams. I also believe the poem critiques peoples way of living as if dreams are pointless which is false,dreams give life meaning and are vital to a happy life.
Becca,
Bravo! What an innovative view of the poem!
"Imagery is used in the line “frozen with snow” to set the setting. Simile is used when “Life is a broken-winged bird” and “Life is a barren field”.
They uphold the poems meaning because the author is comparing dreams and life to something you can grasp a hold of, because dreams should be something you ultimately want to “have” literally."
African Americans were always being viewed differently and were considered lower then the people around them. It'd be important because he would want the other African Americans to know they are not worthless and that they can be useful in life, and so to try and pursue their dreams.
The common goals I believe that are around are that many kids would like to attend college and be successful in the major they study in. They want to have a good family and good money so they can support the people they care about. And most of all everyone was to have fun in life and enjoy it with good experiences. The only differences i could see is how differently everyone wants to live their lives. Some people would like to be very active and travel with their families, others would like to be close-knit. Also the different types of careers people would like to pursue. Not everyone wants to be successful in the same area of work.
4. In my life i have professional, personal and finical goals for myself. my professional goals are to go to collage to be a physical therapist and get a good job when i get out. I plan on being successful and happy in my life.
My personal goals are to get married and have three or four kids. I want to be a working mother while the children are at school.
My finical goals are to be rich. Now realistically i would like to well off. I want to be comfortable finically.
5. I plan to do well in high school and collage in order to accomplish all my goals. It will be a lot of work but i know i can do it.
Sam,
Beautiful sentiment.
"As a teenager, I'm not done forming into who I'm meant to be in the world. None of us can really say we know for sure who and where we'll be, the people we'll meet, and that's a fact that amazes me."
Homework Response:
Most people plan to be well off and married. It seems obvious that everyones dreams are to be happy and no one plans on being poor and unsuccessful.
The differences between everyones that not any two people have the exact same goals. depending on there gender age and personality traits will determine what kind of goals they will want to accomplish.
Aislinn,
You are the first to try to define the concept of the American Dream:
"It seems to me that when it comes right down to it, we all want generally the same thing. To be something, to have a fruitful life that we can both enjoy and be proud of. Some of us ask for more of ourselves in life than others, but these expectations get us all to the same place don't they?"
Cara,
Good answer to my question.
Bravo! Second definition of the American Dream:
"The common goals I believe that are around are that many kids would like to attend college and be successful in the major they study in. They want to have a good family and good money so they can support the people they care about. And most of all everyone was to have fun in life and enjoy it with good experiences. "
Class,
Emily has provided a third definition of the American Dream:
"Most people plan to be well off and married. It seems obvious that everyones dreams are to be happy and no one plans on being poor and unsuccessful."
My goals for the future are to go to college and figure out what i want to do with my life.Really i want to get out of New Jersey and maybe go to college at the university of south florida.If not , Rowan sounds good too. I would like to get a good job and make enough money to have a healthy lifestyle. A family and kids sounds possible if i have time. I really want to be self sufficient and be my own boss one day and have the finacial freedom to do some traveling.In my later years i don't really want to be bothered and enjoy being retired with some golfing and several vacations.
Some steps i can do to help with these goals is to keep doing well in high school and eventually college so i have every chance to get a good job after school.
Homework Question.
From the look of it , it seems everybody seems to have their life well planned out. Everybody is succesful and has families with the exception of one or two who don't want kids. Everybody by the look of it wants to do well in school and go to a good college.It looks like we have nothing to worry about.
4. In my dreams I see myself going on a road trip after high school and living off of ramen noodles and spaghettios for a whole summer. I would then go on to receive my doctorate from Colombia University in New York and minor in photography and French, but considering my work ethic and the grades I get I will not be attending this school, but hey this is my dream.
Then after my studies in college I would like to move to Australia or possibly Hawaii and just go around helping people who need medical attention and do research to find the cure for Multiple Sclerosis. Mind you I would be taking pictures the whole time with my great photography skills.
I personally wouldn't mind if I didn't have all that much money, I just kind of want to do my own thing with what I got. At the end of my life I would like to put all my pictures together and make a book "a day in the life of Meghan Slattery".
5.Steps I should be taking to accomplish these goals would be taking my schoolwork more seriously and being more motivated.
It seems like most everyone is interested in the comfort of being financially stable and its common they are expecting be part of a family and possibly married.
Even though this is a reocurring theme everyone who aspires to have these thing is going to approach them differently.
Homework: Many people seem to want to go to college, probably because they would like to further their education and have a career they enjoy and so they can support the families that many of them seem to want to have. Though I can only say this of female responses because I haven't seen any male yet. Maternal insticts maybe? I don't know, but many of them seem to want families. I noticed a few have goals in mind but some aren't sure where they want to go to college and what they want to be. Which is fine because it's hard to choose something like your entire future as a junior in high school because you really don't know much about your options and what possibilities there are. Ultimately I think everyone just wants to be comforitable and enjoy their chosen life-path. Most people just want to be happy, and the few that don't are what we call "crazy".
Homework Response:
Many people have the common goal of getting good grades and getting into a good college. It seems this way whether they are males or females. They seem universal because most kids hope to grow up to have a successful life and getting good grades would be the start of it.
Also a main goal that people have are getting married and having a family someday. Mostly girls want this but the guys do want this too. I think this is because when people grow up they want people to cherish and love that will help them get through the tough times in life and to make memories with. Without a family, life really isn’t worth living for because without them you would be alone even if they were rich they would have no one to spend their time with.
4. Right now my goals are to get good grades and finish out high school knowing I've done the best i could have. When i think of my future i see myself graduating high school and moving on to live at college. My goal is to be a pharmacist. I plan on doing well in college and maybe even being there longer than 4 years.
After college i plan on getting a job as a pharmacist and getting my own house. I see myself getting married and starting a family in my late 20's. I want to be in a good financial position just in case anything ever happened to my husband, so i would not have to panic. I don't want to have to depend on someone else to support me.
Once i have a family and a home my goals are to travel a lot because i haven't been able to do that yet and I've always wanted to but I know other things are more important right now like doing well in school, and a lot of other things.
5. Right now i study and do all of my homework so i can get good grades because i know that will affect my future. I'm doing the best i can to keep my grades up and finish my high school career strong.
In order to go to college i know i have to do good this year and next year and apply to schools that are realistic for me. I want to set high goals for myself so that I have to actually try to reach them instead of just being handed something for no reason.
Homework: Most people say that they want to go to college and start a family and all that. Obviously nobody wants to be poor and live on the streets. Most peoples goals are the same when they are the same age. Most teenagers goals are to go to college and get an education, although there are some who want to do something else with their lives, but they still have goals.
Older people have different goals then teenagers do, like most teenagers aren't thinking about starting a family yet, but for some people in their 20's, that is the next step in life. There are many different goals that people have and they differ between ages and gender mostly.
4)My personal dream is ultimately be successful. I want to become wealthy but not rich. My dream is to go far without being cocky and arrogant.
My immediate goals would be to first finish high school with a good class rank and gpa. I would also like to get a high score on the SATS. For college, i would like to get a scholarship somewhere. I also want to play baseball for the college I choose to go to.
In the future, I would like to get a six figure job where I can be successful. After that is accomplished I would like to get married eventually. My dream is to have 3 kids, two boys and 1 girl.
5) Theyre are many steps to take accomplish these goals. Some are difficult and some are easy. You must be dedicated to your dreams.
To accomplish these goals i must raise my gpa and class rank. I also must do well in high school baseball. studying hard will also help me accomplish my goals now.
To accomplish my goals in the future I must stay on the same track. I need to finish college and earn my masters degree. Also I need to stay healthy
Response: Many peoples dreams are to become married and successful. Being poor and unsuccessful is never anyones dream. Not everyone has the same dreams, but they are along the same lines.
Theyre many differences in how many kids people want and at what age they want it to happen. Mostly everyone wants to become succesful.
5. In order to accomplish my goals, I need to take steps now to be able to see them through. First, I need to make sure I stay on top of my grades in high school. If I don't maintain good grades, then I may not be able to get in to a college that I want to go to. I am also planning getting a job anywhere between now and the beginning of senior year to help start get off the ground fiancially. Later, to make sure I'm fully reaching my goals I need to go to college and do a good job at that so I can get employed and start setting some of my peronal goals too.
3. My reaction to this poem is that Hughes is trying to get the reader to really understand that without dreams you have no hope. You need to have dreams to have a goal set for your life. Dreams allow you to really set up your future. I belive that Hughes is warning you about how you need to havwe dreams. Dreams allow you to have an imagination as well as plan your future.
4. What i plan for my future is that i would like to be able to support myself financial in a house the size of my own. I would like a house that is a good size not to big but deffanetly not to small.
I would like for my college goals to be able to contain a A high B average. i would like to attend the college Florida university or any other college were i can teach special needs children or even hearing impaired children. i would also like to go to college not in New Jersey, and go live near campus.
After college i would like to try adn find a job that fits my college degree and one that i love. I would like to be married with kids but not to early because you need to be able to live your life fully before your start another one.
5. For now im going to keep up my grades and try to maintain a solid average. Iw ould also like to bring my GPA up to a higher level. I am also going to try tobe less lazy when it comes to studying and actually do it more often then I do.
In the next year or so i would like to have my GPA an grades to a place were I can say are my standards and be able to get into the college of my choice. I would also like to be able to be accepted to one of those colleges with some sort of scholarship, to help wiht the costs.
In the future when im in college im going to work hard at my school work and be abe to get out of college and fid a decent job. Im going to be serious about my work and have fun with it.
HW: It seems that most people want to get good grades and be the best that they are capable of being. They all want to go to a college either far away or close and work hard to gain a good career.
Both the guys and the girls are striving to go to college and then be out in a certain amount of years and then be able to start a family. You would think that only the girls would want this but guys want this too. When your get older you want to start a family, because family is what you look forward to when you have lived your life to the fullest.
4.) My goals for now are to get good grades, and go to college. I want to find a college where I can get a good education but where I won’t be in debt my whole life. I plan to take loans but I don’t want them to come back on me. I want graduate high school and go to college to be something that will benefit me in the future and one that I will enjoy. I would like to be in the Health care field but I still do not know exactly for what.
After college I want to find a good job that is stable and that I know I can support myself and a family with. I want to be able to travel the world and experience other cultures. Before I have a family of my own I want to enjoy being young and try to start settling down. I want to eventually get married when I am kind of young but not too young.
When I am in a stable enough position to support myself I want to get married. I want to buy a house in a nice area where I can eventually have and raise my children in. I want to have 2 or 3 kids. And I want to be able to take them places that I never had the chance to go. I want a beach house and to be able to vacation a lot.
4) My immediate goals are to finish high school with a good GPA, so that I go college with a good scholarship. I don't really want to go through college all on loans because I feel that it's going to be a big burden to pay back. However, loans and grants are going to be unavoidable. Some of my future goals would be graduating college in a career that I like, and will be very beneficial for me.
I'm not quite exactly sure what I want to major in at college, but I think I want to do something in the healthcare field. Probably like a nurse or some kind of specialization work in hospitals. I want to have a good job that I enjoy going to everyday, that pays well so I can travel and take vacations worldwide. I want to explore and visit other countries. Brazil, Italy, and France are on my list of places to see.
Then I want to fall in love and get married. I want to have a big house in a nice rural community. I want to have a big backyard with a pool and plenty of space to have family and friends over. In addition to that I want to have a house right on the beach. I want to have two kids and it would be nice if they get along and don’t fight much. Then I want to retire with a good amount of money saved, and just relax and maybe travel some more.
In order to acheive my goals i need to make sure that i stay focused and graduate high school, and try to get into the best college i can. I need to find the right college and make sure that I find out what i want to major in. During College i have to make sure that i graduate and to not get mixed up with things that would ruin my chance of acheiveing my goal.
I need to find a guy that i would want to marry and have children with, and i need to make sure i get a job that can support my dream, if i dont have the money i need then i can not acheive everything i want to.
I need to save enough money so when i am retired that i can still have enough to support my grandchildren and stuff. I think that focusing on the present and just letting the future fall into place is the best way to do things.
5) To accomplish my goal of getting a academic scholarship to college, I can’t really change much now. However I guess I can just finish out this year strong, get good grades next year and finish high school with a good GPA and SAT scores.
To accomplish my goals of traveling the globe, I’ll have to get a good paying job (that I like) and work hard to get passed all of the other people and get a higher rank than the others. I’ll have to save a lot of my money and not spend too much.
To accomplish my family goal I’ll have to find the right guy. There’s not much I can do specifically to “find” a good husband but obviously I can look for a guy that will be able to love and support a family. The house is a matter of money, which goes back to that good job and my husband can’t be a low-life, do-nothing kind of guy.
My personal dreams are to get accepted to a good college that I can live at, but isn’t too far away from home. I want to major in Forensic Technologies because that will lead me to a job that I would enjoy. I want a job that I can enjoy so that I will do the best I can which will allow me to be successful in life.
My goals as of right now are to continue getting good grades in all of my classes and to do well on the AP Spanish exam. Keeping my GPA up, doing well in all of my classes, and getting good scores on the SATS will give me a better chance of getting into the college that I want which is Penn State. Another goal is to get a scholarship to help pay for my finances in college.
My financial goals are to be wealthy and live in a big city in a nice big house. I want a job that has something to do with forensics, maybe in a crime lab or something similar. In the future I would like to get married and have a family of my own. My goal is to be able to support myself and family and be financially stable incase there are any obstacles.
Many people want to go to college and get a good job. It seems this way whether they are males or females. They have the same veiws because most people want a good life and a very successful life.
Both the girls and the guys seem to want to have families and be married one day. Family is like your dreams you need them to get through life. I think that in general everyone just wants to be happy.
HW: It seems like every one of us wants to go to college, and be successful. I think that is a common goal for most young people. Everyone wants to have a good life and make a good amount of money.
The girls seem like they know they want to have a family while the boys might be unsure. Some guys might be focused more on their careers while the girls are thinking of both. I think its common that we all are looking forward to a good life and we are pretty determined to bring out those goals. It might be interesting to see how many of us accomplish our goals.
4. My personal dreams are to get accepted to a good college that I can live at, but isn’t too far away from home. I want to major in Forensic Technologies because that will lead me to a job that I would enjoy. I want a job that I can enjoy so that I will do the best I can which will allow me to be successful in life.
My goals as of right now are to continue getting good grades in all of my classes and to do well on the AP Spanish exam. Keeping my GPA up, doing well in all of my classes, and getting good scores on the SATS will give me a better chance of getting into the college that I want which is Penn State. Another goal is to get a scholarship to help pay for my finances in college.
My financial goals are to be wealthy and live in a big city in a nice big house. I want a job that has something to do with forensics, maybe in a crime lab or something similar. In the future I would like to get married and have a family of my own. My goal is to be able to support myself and family and be financially stable incase there are any obstacles.
5. Steps I’ll take to fulfill my goals are keeping my grades up and striving to do better. Studying more is another step I’ll have to take in order to do better to improve my GPA.
Another step I’ll take is getting a job to help pay for necessities for my future in college. Getting a job now will help me get ready for the “real world” and help me understand the concepts of becoming an adult.
HW Response:
It seems universal that everyone wants to get good grades in the next two years and get into a good college of their choice so that they’ll be successful because no one wants to struggle in life. Also whether they were male or female they said how they want a family in their future and they stated what profession they want. Everything everyone said was similar, but that’s probably because we’re all around the same age and we live in a small town where there aren’t that many opportunities. Other people from different towns, or older people would probably have different goals and thoughts about each thing.
I have many dreams in my life. After high school I want to go to college, possibly Rutgers. After college I want to find a job, get married, and start a family.
I would either want to become a special needs teacher or physical trainer.
Honestly, I would love to work for the Food Network or anything to do with food, because that is one of my main interests. I think it would be really neat to live in California or Italy. I would love to travel the world
In order to accomplish these goals and dreams, I am going to need to step up my school work, get into a good college, and do good in college.
Pretty much everyone wants to go to college, find a good occupation for them, and make money. Some would like to get married and start families, others would rather travel.
4. Since i don't think my personal dream as a cowboy will work out, i think I'm going to go to college. From there i actually want to become a math teacher. After i work for twenty years hearing kids complain everyday i will retire somewhere nice, like spain....on a teachers salary this might be tough though, so florida it is. Oh, i would always like to be married youngish, and have two kids, one boy, one girl.
5. I think i actually have to start focusing, and caring. Also i have to let my cowboy dream go.
4. My personal dreams are very important to me. The most important dream I have right now is to finish high school with good grades and have fun while doing it. I want to be able to get into a good college. One of my dream colleges is Penn State but I wouldn't mind any other college that is close to home that I would still live on campus. At whatever school I get accepted into I would like to study either elementary education or become a psyciatrist.Both of these would ultimately lead me to having a very good job that I enjoy for the future.
After graduating from college and becoming either a 1st grade teacher or a psyciatrist I would like to get married and have a family. I see myself getting married in my mid twenties. I want to have a huge wedding with all of my family and friends attending. My dream is to have four children, I would prefer twins one being a boy and one being a girl and also two other boys.
My financial goals would be to make a lot of money doing a job that I enjoy. I also want my husband to make a good amount of money to so that together we would be able to provide a good life for our children. I want to live in a smaller town like Audubon with a good education system for my kids. I dream of having a big house with an inground pool and a nice little backyard to have family parties in.
5.One of the steps I plan to take now in order to accomplish these goals would be to keep up my grades in high school. In order to get into a good college I need to study often and strive to do my best at all times during my high school career.
Another step now to making my future sucessfull would to maintain responibility. In order to be responsible I should work on getting a job to prepare myself for the real world and also take on more responsibilities at my house such as helping out my parents which will help me learn more about being on my own in the future.
A step I plan on taking in the future to fullfill my dreams would be to work well with my husband and try to do whats best for our family. I think it is important for a mother and father to work together while making choices for their children. This is something I hope I can do in the future.
HOMEWORK QUESTION:
Most of us all said that we would like to continue getting good grades and eventually get into a good college. In almost everyones dreams they included having a family and most of us wanted to have kids also. Obviously everyone would want to have a good job and make a lot of money to support themselves and their families. I noticed as a read a lot of other students responses that many of us know exactly how many kids we want to have which was surpising to me because I didn't think the boys would know something so specific for their future.
1) I think this poem has a lot of validity to it because dreams are like goal that you want to accomplish in your life and without goals one does not have something to work for or to achieve. And without achieving anything life is not as fulfilling and worthwhile.
2)Langston uses allegory as one of his literary devices. He relates a dream to a bird, and uses the representation of the bird as a hyperbole to show how important having a dream is to him. And how losing that could effect a person forever.
3) I like this poem because it shows a passion for something. This poem shows how easy it is lose sight of something and how easy it is to go through life empty and not really living. He critiques a way people live and also warns against this happening to anyone, but at the same time it celebrates having hopes and dreams and a purpose out of life.
To accomplish my goals, I msut further apply myself in school. To get into the college of my choosing I first need to find a suitable one. This would involve an extensive search at colllege fairs and campus visits.
As for my dream of being a writer; that is totally up to me. I can't depend on the help of another to boost creativity and drive. It's a difficult road, but as Hughes said, a life without dreams is a broken winged bird unable to fly.
4) I'm not sure how my life is going to pan out, but if I could have everything go as plan it would be to get a a division one swimming scholarship to a large state university. And to continue to improve on my swimming, and possibly make NCAA. I would like to look back on my last race ever, when ever it should be, as be able to say I did everything right and went as fast as I could possibly go, and have no regrets or second thoughts. While at college I would like to study to become a physical therapist, and possible go on to get a doctorate in that field.
When out of college I would either like to become a physical therapist for the US olympic team, NASA astronauts that have just returned from space and need to regain muscle mass, or a professional sports team of some kind. I plan on making a lot of money. With this money I design my own house and decorate the whole thing myself. I like to shop a lot so I'm going to need a high paying job. The first new real car I get is going to be a Lexus mini SUV.
I'm not completely sold on the whole marriage and having kids idea yet. I don't know if I ever will be. My main goals in life are not going to be that. It may sound selfish and weird, but I don't think that will make me a bad person. If I do have kids or a husband I would like to financially secure before dealing with either. That is why I plan on making my career my top priority.
5) I will have to work very hard in high school and at college to achieve this goals. I will also have to work very hard at practice everyday, and continue to not miss practices. I will have to be very persistent to achieve my career goals. And most importanly start designing my house now!
4. As far as my dreams go, they're always changing. I'm still trying to find a profession that will financially support me for at least 40 years, and one that I will enjoy doing for that long. I like to work with people and help them, so I see myself working in the clinical medical field. I've been thinking about going to school to become a nurse practitioner or physicians assistant, but I like psychology too, so I came up with clinical neurologist specializing in behavioral neuroscience. I want to go to a school where I have alot of options, maybe some not even in the field I was intending. I also want to stay local and commute to and from school. My personal goals include eventually getting married and having some kids, and supporting my family with a stable career. If I do end up having kids, I wouldn't want to stay in Audubon, personally because I don't really like small towns.
5. Many people seem to have similar ways they want to go about their goals. We all want to go to college, and have a stable job to support ourselves. Also, many of us want to start a family and have kids.
Homework: A common goal everyone has is to finish high school and go to colllege. Everyone wants to reach sucess, whether it be finacial sucess, where they are professionally respected, or personal sucess in which they are happy with their lives. A lot of people want to have a stable career and have a family. Some are more adventorous than others, and want to travel.
Generally everyone had the same reaction to the poem. Most people agreed with it and felt strongly about Hughes’ view. Others felt indifferently about the poem, knowing that it wasn’t the reaction that Hughes was looking for. A lot of people agreed that the poem was pretty depressing and the mood was pretty melancholy, even though it probably wasn’t the reaction that Hughes was looking for either. I think there’s a general understanding that not much time or thought was put into this poem.
To the last question, everyone put something about getting into college and finding a good job, as well as planning on being financially stable. In people’s dreams, everyone wanted to be happy and have a good job, as well as have gone to a good college and mostly everyone wanted to be happy with kids and married, living in a good house in a nice area. Mostly everyone wanted to have a different career, but they all wanted to be financially stable. The guys mostly all said they were unsure about family and focused on career, and the girls focused on both.
1. The meaning of the poem is that fulfilling your dreams are very important to life itself. Without dreams, life would just be boring.We wouldn't experience any challenges or have anything to strive for in our lives which makes life too easy. I do agree with this poem because if we didn't have dreams, life wouldn't be as interesting and meaningful.
2. Some literary devices Hughes uses in this poem are metaphors and personification. He uses a metaphor in these lines: "For if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot die." Hughes is comparing not having dreams to a broken-winged bird that can't fly. This device upholds the poem's meaning because it is expressing in depth how bad it could be without dreams. It grabs our attention and makes us realize that dreams are important. Personification ws used when Hughes said: "Life is a barrren field." Hughes is giving "life" characteristics. This device upholds the mood and tone by giving us a sense of how empty it would be without dreams and makes us reconsider and actually think; which makes the poem's meaning a lot more significant.
3. My personal recations to this poem is that it is very well put and gets to the point and has a lot of meaning even though it is really short. I also feel worried that I don't have enough dreams in my life and I should start thinking about them. Hughes provokes these emotions in a reader so that they can have a different outlook on life and feel like the poem was worth their time reading. I think he warns people that they better realize how important dreams are while critiquing that he doesn't believe many people have dreams. He warns readers that if they don't have dreams, they should start thinking about some because they're very significant to life.
4. I have a lot of goals in my life that I would like to accomplish. However, I do have some goals that are more important to me and I would be so proud if I achieved them. First, I want to graduate high school with better grades and move on to a good college. I want to go to a college that will make me become very successful. This will also make myself and my family and friends very proud of me and I love that feeling. I also want to finish out my years of college with really good grades so that I can go further on in my life and become who I want to be.
Next, I would like to start my dream career. After college, I am hoping to become very successful in the forensics field. I love everything about forensics and I would absolutely love it if I had my dream job as comparing bullets and casings. I know I would be happy to go to work everyday and I would be so proud of myself.
Finally, I would like to get married and have 4 kids. I want to get married to my dream guy and I want to be that person who is married to the same person for years and years. I also want 2 boys and 2 girls. Ever since I was little, I knew I wanted to grow up and have kids. I can't wait to accomplish these goals and be happy with my life because I am determined to achieve all of these goals so everyone can be proud and I will be living my dream.
5. Starting now I need to start focusing more on my school work. Lately, I have been not doing the best that I can. I need to start paying more attention in class and participating more. If I get my priorities straight and work harder, I can start accomplishing my goals and become what I want to be.
I also could study more on the weekends so I can get better grades. I usually wait until the last minute to study so if I dedicate more of my time to studying, then my grades will improve and I will be more happy.
Finally, if I start looking at colleges now, it may save me a lot of time and stress in the future. I coud get ahead of the game start searching for the right college for me and my "new life" can start. If i just start working harder and do all of these things, I can accoomplish all of my goals and become more successful.
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