Paul Laurence Dunbar: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

Dreams (2)

Paul Laurence Dunbar

“Dreams (2)” as printed in The Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar (1913).

Paul Laurence Dunbar: Collected Lyrics Text 43 1913 · historical text
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Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

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In MayThe Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbarby Paul Laurence DunbarDreamsThe Tryst→sister projects: Wikidata item

WHAT dreams we have and how they fly

Like rosy clouds across the sky;

Of wealth, of fame, of sure success,

Of love that comes to cheer and bless;

And how they wither, how they fade,

The waning wealth, the jilting jade --

The fame that for a moment gleams,

Then flies forever, --dreams, ah --dreams!

O burning doubt and long regret

O tears with which our eyes are wet,

Heart-throbs, heart-aches, the glut of pain,

The somber cloud, the bitter rain,

You were not of those dreams -- ah! well,

Your full fruition who can tell?

Wealth, fame, and love, ah! love that beams

Upon our souls, all dreams -- ah! dreams.

Credits

Written by Paul Laurence Dunbar

Words by Paul Laurence Dunbar. Historical text published in The Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar (1913); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar (1913), “Dreams (2)”

Every text in this collected edition is by Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906); his works entered the public domain in life-plus-70 jurisdictions in 1977, and the 1913 edition is in the public domain in the United States. The edition carries a Wikisource PD-old determination.

How to read this historical text and its source

Read the source on Wikisource

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Retrieved 2026-10-27. Line spacing and section labels are adapted for reading. The displayed text follows the linked edition. Editorial notes and abstract artwork are by 52lyrics.
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