Dream Variations
By Langston Hughes, 1902 – 1967
To fling my arms wide
In some place of the sun,
To whirl and to dance
Till the white day is done.
Then rest at cool evening
Beneath a tall tree
While night comes on gently,
Dark like me—
That is my dream!
To fling my arms wide
In the face of the sun,
Dance! Whirl! Whirl!
Till the quick day is done.
Rest at pale evening . . .
A tall, slim tree . . .
Night coming tenderly
Black like me. “Dream Variations” by Langston Hughes 1. What do you know about the speaker? Cite the lines that reveal that information. 2. What mood or emotion did you feel in reading “Dream Variations”? What verbs suggest that mood. 3. In “Dream Variations,” what does the speaker dream of doing till the “white” day is done? Since this is a dream, what might the reader infer about the reality of the speaker’s life? What double meaning might be intended by the phrase “white day”? 4. What words does Hughes use to describe color and images of darkness? How might the use of color and images of darkness also be used to symbolize another meaning in the poem?