Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Grade 11- Memorize Poem for Monday

Dream Deferred

What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?

Langston Hughes

45 comments:

  1. I thought this was a good poem. it made a lot of sence and was well written. it had a lot of assonance, consonance, alliteration and imagery in it. there was also a ot of symbolism. i notced a lot about poem difurbilation.

    AB period 1

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  2. I think that the poem brings up a good question of what happens to peoples dreams if they do not put them into actions.A dream to me, always stays in the back of my mind, whether it comes true or not. I like looking back on my acomplishments, however i also like having future goals. Without dreams none of the original but creative ideas people have today would be in existance; planes, cars, pens, electricity, etc. - Z.T. Period 1

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  3. I think that this poem is basically saying that you need to follow your dreams, and you should never put them off, otherwise they may be forgotten and then your dream will never be accomplished. The poem is basically saying that a dream can either dry up, which basically means it has been forgotten about, or it can run which means that the person just gave up and the dream is gone, or it can just explode which i think means that it has been accomplished to the fullest extent.


    BF Period one

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  4. I feel that this poem is referring to a dream that can't come true at that present time. I feel "Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun" asks does the dream shrivel up and go away if it can't come true right away. I think that all the lines in the poem talk about the dream slowly disappearing until the last line. The last line asks "Or does it explode". I think that this says that a dream deferred might explode and come true later on when you least expect it. This poem i full of imagery and each line paints a picture in my head.

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  5. I think that the poem "A Dream Deferred" by Langston Hughes means don't give up on your dreams. If someone has the chance to do something great with their life then they should go for it. I feel like that line "Maybe it just sags like a heavy load" means that if someone has the opportunity to live out their dream and they don’t do it and give up, that thought is going to be in the back of their heads forever and they're are always going to think of what they could have been and what they could have accomplished in their life if they went forward with their dream.
    S.R. Period 1

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  6. I believe this is a well written poem. It had alot of lines that really made you think, and put images in your mind. This poem makes you search deeper for the meaning behind the words.
    mh, period1

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  7. I feel that this poem is referring to a dream that can't come true at that present time. I feel "Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun" asks does the dream shrivel up and go away if it can't come true right away. I think that all the lines in the poem talk about the dream slowly disappearing until the last line. The last line asks "Or does it explode". I think that this says that a dream deferred might explode and come true later on when you least expect it. This poem i full of imagery and each line paints a picture in my head.

    S.K. Period 1

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  8. i Think that langston Hughes is trying to say that a dream deffered is lik a wasted oppertunity. If you dont make the most of ur oppertunities when chasing ur dreams then you truly wont be happy. You will dry up like a raisin inthe sun, feter like sore, sugar over like a syrupy sweet, or even explode.
    -MP / P1

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  9. The poem "A Dream Deferred" by Langaton Hughes, makes us think deeper meanings of the words. He wrote about his feelings, which can be applied to many different things. The similies are illustrated feelings of a person that has his or her dram go unfulfilled for whatever reasons in life.

    KC, Period 1

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  10. The poem “A Dream Deferred” can be about a dream in your sleep or about a future dream of yours. One of the lines says, “Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?” which means that they just kind of disapear and you forget about them. Where it says, “Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over—like a syrupy sweet?” means that thay can either turn out bad or good.
    KL Period 1

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  11. It was a very simple yet effective poem. The idea behind it is very broad. What happens to a dream deferred? I think it always stays with you and you just keep it in the back of your mind with out knowing it.

    N.V

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  12. To me, A "Dream Deferred" is a dream that has been put off. However, by reading this poem, we never really get an answer of what exactly a dream deferred really is, we only get more questions and more alliteration. But, we do get to see what Mr. Hughes believes, through those symbols. He believes that a dream postponed can only cause destruction, "or does it explode" and it will only cause problems.
    SH
    P-1

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  13. I believe that a dream deffered is a wasted oppurtunity. If you dont live out your dreams, you are wasting great oppurtunities. After reading the poem, I got the idea that Lanston Hughes was trying to say that if you put off a dream and dont live it out, you are wasting an oppurtunity. I believe that the message from this poem is, Fufill your dreams and never waste an oppurtunity.
    BQ period 1

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  14. This was a very interesting peace of literature. The author made him self clear about what he was triying to say about posponed dreams and if a dream could beacomplished.

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  15. This was a very interesting peace of literature. The author made him self clear about what he was triying to say about posponed dreams and if a dream could beacomplished.

    Sj period 1

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  16. I think this poem is interesting because it raieses good questions about dreams that have never come true. Think of how much different the world could be today if everyone went through with their dreams. The poem had alot of symbolism and imagery which i found stupendous.
    CM PERIOD 4 ROCK ON

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  17. I think this poem is interesting because it raieses good questions about dreams that have never come true. Think of how much different the world could be today if everyone went through with their dreams. The poem had alot of symbolism and imagery which i found stupendous.
    CM PERIOD 4 ROCK ON

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  18. I think that this poem means that no matter what you should never give up on what you believe in. I think that everyone has a dream ad if you put it away because you don’t think that your good enough to make it to that dream then it will just sit there and never come back to you. I think that it is important to follow your dreams no matter how crazy they seem. I find this poem telling us what could happen to a dream if you just give up on it and what happens to it if you follow through with it.
    AH period 4

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  19. This is a good piece of literature and it states a question of what happens to your dreams if you don’t put them into actions. The author gives examples of what could happen to your dreams by either drying up or exploding and your dream is forgotten.

    T P$4

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  20. I liked this poem alot. It made alot of sense if you really look at the symbolism in it. The poem also had alot of imagery because as you read it you think and imagine what the outhor is talking about. I think the message in this poem is bassically to follow your dreams and dont let anything get in your way.

    jg---p-4

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  21. CM period 4 .... you are not very intelligent

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  22. I think that this poem talks about what times to a dream if it is posponed. I think that it explains that two things can happen to a dream. It can either be forgotten or it can come true and you can live your dream. Dreams can dry up over time and soon be forgetton. Also dreams if they are not followed they can become heavy loads for people and weigh you down through life. I noticed alliteraton and consonance in this poem. Examples of this are, “dream deferred” and “syrupy sweet”

    KH P-4

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  23. I thought this poem was a little depressing. I believe people should go after their dreams no matter what gets put in the way, that's what makes you stronger, getting through the hard times and makeing your dreams come true. I feel like this poem is a refelction of someone who stopped dreaming and turned their dream into something bad like dreaming is bad. When that is not what most people believe. You need to go after your dreams not leave them to dry up like a raisin in the sun like Langston says. AG period 4

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  24. I believe that this particular poem was well written, and that it is making a definitive try at explaining to people that their dreams about equality cannot be deferred. They must never be forgotten or thrown away because then they will become nothing, just regrets and dissapointments, making you defer the possibility of equality. He’s saying that if people don’t pay attention to the racism, and unwarranted laws against people, then there will be no dream. It will be dried up like a raisin in the sun, an unrecognizable “once upon a time”. And I believe that’s how resonates into today. That’s my opinion on this poem.
    DW Period 4

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  25. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  26. I think that this poem really paints a clear picture for you of what a dream postponed is. If you have your heart set on soemething and it's always been a dream of yours once it's taken away from you or you can't continue on with it, it does seem like a festering sore or rotting meat. I feel this way because if I ever was put in a situation where my dreams were crushed, it would feel like a heavy load weighing on my shoulders of something that I could have done and should have done but never really got the chance.

    EK Period 4

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  27. In my opinion this poem is not exactly telling you one set thing about what happens to a dream set off. It leaves options for the reader to interpret what it means for you. But in my opinion, and what I think I share with the author of this poem is that if you don’t chase and embrace your dreams the will be forgotten, they will “dry up like a raisin in the sun.”
    MR p. 4

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  28. To me this poem had the meaning of what happens to dreams thatbare postponed? If they are put off for a while are they completley forgoten? The use of many similies in this poem help explain the meaning of it to me. The author is just trying to figure out what happens with everyones dreams.

    am p-4

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  29. I think this poem shows a lot of imagry. The image of a dream festering like a sore is like it being left alone so long without being catered to and evenually becoming sickly and infected- not suitable to be accomplished. The image of it drying in the sun like a rasin is like it getting the life sucked out of it like a dream not able to be completed. The image of it being a load is like the dream put off so long that it just sits there like a heavy load. Finally, the image of the dream exploding is like it has just been put off for so long, it’s impossible to complete anymore because of too much passed time.

    HR period 4

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  30. I think the author of this poem was trying to convey to the reader that the person speaking when you read this poem is not in a good place. That the voice you hear may live in the ghetto or a land flurished with poverty and that if their dream is getting out of poverty and it doesn't happen then life's going to suck.

    BL PERIOD 4

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  31. I believe that this poem could have many meanings to it. I believe it means one should strive for his/her dreams, and if you don’t that nothing will happen to them, besides disappear. All of the examples, the object lingers and later does nothing, but stay, and then later disappear. A sore that festers, then goes away. Rotten meat will stink at first, then eventually the smell will disappear. The last two lines sum up all of the poem. Maybe it sags like a heavy load could be the buildup of all the dreams before they disappear, or explode. The author used Many Similes which made the poem intriguing. - GP Period Four

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  32. Well I can not make heads or tails of this poem. But I do see where the writer is going with this. If a dream is always being shut down there are many outcomes to it. Maybe a neutral out come, a painful one, or even an explosion. I think it’s well written but I don’t care for this poem.

    J. D period 4

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  33. Well I can not make heads or tails of this poem. But I do see where the writer is going with this. If a dream is always being shut down there are many outcomes to it. Maybe a neutral out come, a painful one, or even an explosion. I think it’s well written but I don’t care for this poem.

    J. D period 4

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  34. I believe that this poem, “A Dream Deferred” by Langston Hughes is basically summing up the effects and unfortunate events that occurred during the Harlem Renaissance from 1910-1940. Most blacks who traveled to Harlem went to seek freedom, opportunities, and racial intolerance but instead found the complete opposite. Blacks were faced with overcrowding, exploitation, and poverty. Blacks were waiting almost as if a ticking bomb, waiting for their fates and postponed dreams leading up to the intensity of explosion which is the severity. “Like a raisin in the sun” can symbolize the dream withering up disappearing. “Does it smell like rotten meat” symbolizes a sickening reminder that will never be. “Or crust and sugar over” symbolizes a dream covered up maybe by society or other obstacles in the way.
    SF p.4

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  35. I am not very sure what kind of dreams old langston Hughes is really atlking about. Is she talking about dreams you have at night while sleeping, or dreams like, i will be president one day. I believe she is taling about real dreams, like dreams of the future. And what she is trying to say, is that if ypu dont achieve your dreams, and just forget about them, then they vanish. Whether it is slowly deffered, by drying up in the sun. Or if it quickly goes away by exploding. The way the author also used raw meet as an inference was interesting. Ive never related raw meat and dreams
    J.C. Period 8

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  36. I believe that this poem is very well written because but i do not think it makes much sense to me. I had a lot of trouble interpreting the poem, but i think i got the general messae that was sent. He is trying to say that all dreams that are put off are affected one way or another. He is telling your all the things that could happen to your delayed dreams. Whether it be your dreams crusting over and exploding, nothing good can come out of dreams put off to the side.

    RM
    period 8

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  37. When you think of good poetry, you usually think of lots of imagery, alliteration, symbolism, and other things of that sort. The poem "A Dream Deferred" is a good example of a good poem. It contains all the necessities that make a poem a good one. It talks about a dream deferred, or a delayed dream. I think the poem generally is about what happens when you have to delay a dream, which happens to a lot of people in life. I like the line "or crust and sugar over -- like a syrupy sweet". You can picture a maple syrup like that nd when you relate that to a dream, you think that does it get sticky and something you don't really want to eat. I think the speaker is trying to portray the message that if you let a dream defer, sometimes you can never go back to that dream, that most people leave them untouched and gross, like "a rotten meat". This poem is kind of like when you have a childhood dream, sometimes their just gone forever, like Randy Pausch's Last Lecture which lectures on fulfilling those dreams, cause if you don't, like the poem says, they might "dry up like a raisin in the sun." B.K. Period 1

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  38. I think lanston is putting forth 2 points of views in his poem. He talks about two points of views, one going big and succeeding, and the other is like being a lost cause. You can fester like a sore, stink like rotten meat, or explode. Basically you have to take advantages of the opportunites you get.
    PM p.8

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  39. This is a good poem. It makes me wonder if that dream ever comes true. It has a Sweat and Sour tone to it. Yes the dream might not even come true but at the same time there is a bright side to it.
    BSB
    Period 8

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  40. i think that this poem 9is saying to not give up on your dreams. Maybe a raisin in the sun refers to the slaves working in the field in the hot sun. Most of them probably gave up on their dreams when they where enslaved. Or the raisin in the sun could be your dream dies and you can never fulfill it know. If you give up on a dream it will fester like a sore and hurt you every day. Maybe it will stink like rotten meat and you’ll regret it for ever. Crusting and sugaring over like a syrupy sweet could mean that you don’t regret deferring your dream. Maybe your dream holds you back like a heavy load or maybe it just blows up in your face.
    DG Period 1

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  41. I thought it was a good poem. I think the poem is asking where your dreams and ambitions go after you move on with your life. It wants to know do they just dry up or if they just explode.
    A.V p8

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  42. The writer of this poem starts out his poem by expressing, “What happens to a dream deferred?”
    This question appears to be answered with nothing but more questions. But if you analyze each question, you will be able to get an idea of what the speaker really believes about dreams being put off in life. A dream is described as a goal in life, not just dreams witnessed in sleep, but it is important in the dreamers world around them. In this poem, the dream is left up to the reader to understand. Basically any important dream or goal that must be put off can have serious negative effects.As we look at each question we find out what those affects are. With each question the speaker offers a possibility of each negative affect. The questions he asks imply that. When really reading deep down into the poem, you begin to understand the true meaning of how important a dream could be if you want to make it come true.

    C.S. Period 8

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  43. i think that this poem is very well written, the question it asks is very true though. what happens to a dream when it is ignored? this is the authors depiction of the possible outcomes when ignoring a dream are very surreal, but are metaphors. overall i really like the poem

    MD period 8

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  44. I think this poem is referring to future dreams and goals of an individual. I myself have big dreams for when I grow up. The line “Does is dry up like a raison in the sun?” means that if a dream is deferred it will slowly disappear and may become unachievable. If you do not work hard your dreams will not come true. The author wrote” maybe it just sags like a heavy load.” I think this compares a forgotten dream to a heavy load because they both can bring you down.
    lh period 8

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  45. what the hell? this poem makes no sense at all. i personally feel that langston hughes is a strange old man that needs to stop writing poems.

    sm period 3

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