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Poems and conversations · Question 116 of 150

What is the poem's main message?

Question 116

MediumOriginal question

Tell me not, in numbers,
Life is but an empty dream!—
For the soul is dead that slumbers,
And things are not what they seem.

Life is real! Life is !
And the grave is not its goal;
Dust thou art, to dust returnest,
Was not spoken of the soul.

Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,
Is our destined end or way;
But to act, that each to-morrow
Find us farther than to-day.

Art is long, and Time is ,
And our hearts, though stout and brave,
Still, like muffled drums, are beating
Funeral marches to the grave.

In the world's broad field of battle,
In the of Life,
Be not like dumb, driven cattle!
Be a hero in the strife!

Trust no Future, howe'er pleasant!
Let the dead Past bury its dead!
Act,—act in the living Present!
Heart within, and God o'erhead!

Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives ,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;

Footprints, that perhaps another,
Sailing o'er life's solemn main,
A and shipwrecked brother,
Seeing, shall take heart again.

Let us, then, be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing,
Learn to labor and to wait.

What is the poem's main message?

Options for question 116

Show the answer and explanation
CorrectNot quiteAnswer B

Correct answer: B

Explanation

  1. "Life is real! Life is earnest!", "Act,—act in the living Present!" and "Let us, then, be up and doing".

Worth noting

The first lines reject the idea that "Life is but an empty dream".

Concept
Finding a poem's message
Typical time
45 s
Your time
—
The rule this testsThe main idea and the best title
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Ten questions from Poems and conversations, at your own pace.

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Ten questions from Poems and conversations, at your own pace.