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Matthew Arnold, “Dover Beach”

Poe’s “A Dream Within a Dream” and Matthew Arnold’s “Dover Beach” both share the same topos of the surf-tormented beach, used to express an existential crisis. Furthermore, the grains of sand on this beach, like the pebbles at Dover, powerfully symbolize the human condition.

Edgar Allan Poe, “The Raven”

Readers of “A Dream Within a Dream” should definitely compare the poem to “The Raven,” though more for their stylistic differences. The comparison showcases Poe’s range as a poet.

Poe’s Short Stories

It seems intrinsically of interest to link the Edgar Allan Poe's stories to his poems. Poe, of course, was well known for both his verse and his stories, but today he’s specially regarded as one of the chief architects of the modern short story. Readers will find in the stories a similar preoccupation with death, regret, and longing.

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