Dreams are often considered as repressed desires or thoughts of our unconscious mind. Have you ever had a nightmare so traumatizing that you had to get up and pinch yourself back to reality? So terrifying that each moment spent in your dream you wished that it was actually a dream and you want to wake up? Have you ever had “A Dream of Death”?
“A Dream of Death” is a poem written by William Butler Yeats where he describes a dream that he had of a woman, possibly the woman he loves dying in a strange land and getting buried by strangers. The poet has used strong imagery so that one can actually feel what the poet felt.
A Dream of Death
I dreamed that one had died in a strange place Near no accustomed hand; And they had nailed the boards above her face, The peasants of that land, Wondering to lay her in that solitude, And raised above her mound A cross they had made out of two bits of Wood And planted Cypress round; And left her to the indifferent stars above Until I carved these Words: She was more beautiful than thy first love, But now lies under boards. -W.B. Yeats
Meaning and Summary
“A Dream of Death” by William Butler Yeats is a poem that talks about a dream that the narrator had. He tells us that he had dreamed of the death of some stranger, in some strange place who had been buried by unknown people.
In the beginning of the poem, the poet tries to shield the importance of the person who died, but gradually reveals to the readers that it is a woman.
The strangers who buried her exert minimal effort and make a cross with just two bits of wood and place it on her grave along with a cypress plant. The woman in the grave will be remembered by no one, she will be left all alone with stars that shine above her.
The end of the lines emphasize on how beauty fades. This is indicated by the fact that the poet mentions “she was” and “but now”. She has been buried in a place where her beauty will be left unseen by the world.
Her body will slowly decay in the coffin now and she will no longer be beautiful, suggesting that beauty is a lie.
Even though she might not remain beautiful for eternity, the poet making an inscription on the grave will illustrate that she will be loved for eternity.
Analysis of the Poem
I dreamed that one had died in a strange place
Near no accustomed hand,
In the first line of the poem, the poet suggests that he had a dream that someone had died. The poet does not mention who he dreamed about. But all we know is that “one” had died in a place that was “strange”. By “strange” the poet means a foreign place, a place where the “one” was a stranger and did not know anyone.
The “one” who died is alone in a foreign land and has “no accustomed hand” meaning that there are no hands that they are used to. Initially, the poet shields the importance of the deceased person, because they are not given any name, which depicts that there is no or little personal connection between the stranger and the poet.
And they had nailed the boards above her face,
The peasants of that land,
In these lines we get to know that the person who died is a woman. The woman who died in a foreign land was buried by the peasants of that land. By “the boards above her face” the poet suggests building of a coffin.
However, the terms used for burial are harsh, indicating that the peasants buried her not out of love but because of necessity.
The poet uses a dark and unsettling tone in these lines. Moreover, the poet has tried to emphasize that the woman has died a lonely death away from her home and the people who do not know anything about her are the ones that buried her.
Wondering to lay her in that solitude,
And raised above her mound
A cross they had made out of two bits of wood,
And planted cypress round;
In these lines, the poet tells us that the people of that land had found her and had decided to bury her. The poet uses the word “wondering” to suggest that the people were hesitant to bury her in a place where she was all alone.
The people placed a cross and cypress plant above her grave. The cross that was made of “two bits of wood” suggests that the people made minimal effort in burying her. She was found by strangers who knew nothing about her and her grave was neither made or tended by a loved one.
The cypress trees set a religious and spiritual tone to the poem, as they represent the eternal life that comes after death.
And left her to the indifferent stars above
Until I carved these words:
She was more beautiful than thy first love,
But now lies under boards.
The people who buried her finally leave the woman’s grave. The only presence is that of the stars above until the poet carves an inscription which says that the woman in the grave will be loved for eternity.
The poet uses the word “thy” so that the readers become more emotionally attached to the poem. The poet writes these words in his dream so that everyone can read and know in that foreign land that she was loved as well by someone. She had a home too. Her beauty can no longer be seen but the poet wants anyone who passes by the grave to know that she was beautiful.
Themes
The themes of the poem “A Dream of Death” are death, love, being forgotten, remembrance, and physical appearance. The poet dreams of a death, but never actually mentions whose death.
This adds to the mystery of death because no one knows what was the cause of the woman’s death, where did she die and who buried her. All we know is just that wherever it happened, it was a foreign land. This also adds to ambiguity of the things that we dream of.
The woman had died, but no one knew her, she was all alone. She was not tended or taken care of by people she knew. Perhaps, the strangers had to bury her because it was a necessity and no one was really upset about her death there.
She was not known by anyone there which makes it easier for people to forget about her. She was not buried in a graveyard, people exerted minimal efforts in burying her and had just “nailed the boards above her face”.
The poet fears that she will no longer be remembered by anyone, not even by the people who buried her. Just so that people knew someone was buried there, the strangers mound and place a cross made with just bits of wood. They also place a cypress plant which adds to the somber tone of the poem.
However, in the end the poet makes an inscription on the cross that she is more beautiful than “thy” first love, so that everyone knows she was a beautiful woman. But, since now she lies under the boards her beauty is going to slowly decay.
The physical belongings and characteristics matter as long as we live. The woman’s beauty will no longer be seen again. Thus, the poem also symbolizes that there is nothing in the world that people can remember you by, except one thing, which is love.
The poet has expressed his love for the woman, though the woman will not be remembered by anyone, she will be loved eternally. She is always going to be beautiful for him, the poet wants her to know that.
Literary Devices
The literary devices used in the poem “A Dream of Death” by William Butler Yeats are :
End- stopped lines– The end-stopped lines provide a rhythm to the poem, and it denotes the end of a single thought. For example:
Near no accustomed hand,
And they had nailed the boards above her face,
The peasants of that land,
And planted cypress round;
And left her to the indifferent stars above
Until I carved these words:
Enjambment– A few examples of enjambment from the poet are:
I dreamed that one had died in a strange place
And raised above her mound
And left her to the indifferent stars above
Metaphor– The poet has used metaphor in the poem to explain that the people from the foreign land made a grave for the woman. For example: “nailed the boards above her face”.
Alliteration– A few examples of alliteration from the poem are:
The peasants of that land,
And left her to the indifferent stars above
She was more beautiful than thy first love,
Repetition– The poet has repeated the word “And” several times to indicate that there was always one thing after the other in his dream, it did not end or stop.
Conclusion
“A Dream of Death” is a poem where we understand that no one is going to remember us when we die, no one is going to remember how beautiful you were, how kind you were. When someone talks about you all they are going to remember is that you are no more a part of the living world.
I believe that at the end of the day it is love that lives on even if we die. Death erases people from the world, as if one never existed. The way the beauty of the woman was fading slowly in the grave, similarly, the memories she had created in this world started fading.