"By the Stream"

"By the Stream" Classic Poem by Paul Laurence DunbarBy the stream I dream in calm delight, and watch as in a glass,How the clouds like crowds of snowy-hued and white-robed maidens pass,And the water into ripples breaks and sparkles as it spreads,Like a host of armored knights with silver helmets on their heads.And I deem the stream an emblem fit of human life may go,For I find a mind may sparkle much and yet but shallows show,And a soul may glow with myriad lights and wondrous mysteries,When it only lies a dormant thing and mirrors what it sees."By the Stream" is a contemplative poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar describing how things are often not what they seem. The poem does not specify the gender of the speaker, but one can assume it is a male persona contemplating over his inability to find a suitable mate, or his inability to express his true self to someone he loved. The themes of the poem are reflection and facing reality. The entire poem holds a nostalgic and even bitter mood in which the reader is forced to contemplate alongside the voice that Dunbar has created. Paul Laurence Dunbar, born in 1872 and the author of numerous collections of poetry and prose, was one of the first African American poets to gain national recognition.