Langston in this stanza uses a lot of imagery for us. He is trying to put the mental image in our heads that a life without dreams like he compared to the bird in the first stanza, is like a barren field. Empty. Not only empty but the snow making it cold could show that someone without dreams becomes a cold or even grumpy person because there is no goals or aspirations they want or have even met.

The way Hughes holds having a dream in such regard is why he is one of my favorite poets, This poem uses metaphors in it and it makes it more elegant to me. Hughes describes a very vivid idea of why a dream should never be lost.

He compares losing dreams like frozen snow or a barren field. This literary device is using metaphors.

Hughes repeats the beginning statement that he said in the first statement.

The first line of the poem is repeated at the start of the second stanza, reminding the reader and showing the importance of going after your dreams. The frozen field describes how uninteresting and unpleasant life could feel if you let go of your dreams. A barren and frozen field does not support any kinds of plants and in other words, no life. Without dreams your life will never be as good as it can possibly be.

The second stanza says life is a barren and frozen field without dreams. Again, a metaphor is used to create this devastating imagery of a field that is not fruitful. There is no color as it is covered in snow. It is bland and void of life and growth. Dreams push people to move forward and without any goals the world can be a very unforgiving place.

The three lines highlighted here in Langstons poem compares a life with no dreams like a life of a bird with a broken wing. He uses this metaphor to say that dreams are essential to life the way wings are to a bird. Without dreams there can be not growth or aspirations like a bird who doesn’t have the ability to fly.

All in all I think the purpose or focus of this poem is the reader to not give up on a dream. How can we when dreams are really all we have. Dreams are the basis for any successful idea. Hughes reminds us that we must hold fast to the dreams we may have. Using simile’s and metaphors we can get the purpose of these poem that dreams are worth keeping alive

When Hughes describes that life is a broken winged bird. The winged bird i think represents what happens if a dream is lost. Hughes uses a simile a lot to describe his point.

The phrase “Hold fast to dreams”, Hughes is eluding to that a dream is very important. Once you lose your dream life can feel broken or have no purpose.

Langston Hughes wrote “Dreams” to show how if you don’t hold onto your dreams life isn’t worth living. He says how if you let your dreams go, then life is like a “barren field”. You need to have some sort of passion or dream in life or else life is just too boring and there’s nothing to life. You aren’t truly living if you don’t have dreams. When he starts off with “hold fast” it emphasizes the importance of dreams and grabs the readers attention. When he goes onto say “for if dreams die” it creates a dramatic road into the sad tone he creates when describing what happens when your dreams die. Saying that life is like a broken winged bird who cannot fly, which is a very sad image that is placed into the readers head. He then repeats the same thing and compares life to a barren field frozen with snow, showing how without dreams life is so barren and empty. Without a passion or dream, life is a sad and empty place. Without a dream you have no motivation to live your life the way you wish to, which is the whole point of the poem.

Hughes starts off the poem by implying that you need to capitalize on your opportunities or dreams because sometimes you may not have a long time to make something happen. When he compares dead dreams to the life of a broken winged bird he is saying that you won’t go anywhere in life if you don’t chase your dreams, just like the bird won’t be able to go anywhere really because of a broken wing.

“Hold fast” is a command to the reader and is a startling way to open a poem. It is used as a device to emphasize the importance of the dreams before there is any explanation why. Both stanzas utilize metaphors. In this stanza life is said to be ‘a broken winged bird’ The obvious message of the poem is to hold on to your dreams. Hughes uses this dire imagery of a broken winged bird to raise the question: “what can a bird do if it has no wings?” and the more important question “what can a person do if they have no dreams?” This metaphor is a great device to suggest that dreams create purpose in life and people need those goals and aspirations to keep them moving forward.

The crab, with its hard, protective shell, is a symbol of self-protection for the speaker, and he wants to have a suit of armor like the crab to protect against life’s pain.

Erotic triggers like ‘downed with light brown hair’ are common in literature. For example, Jane Austen’s women fuss with hair curls and ribbons as a substitute for more forbidden blatant eroticism.