Among the Red Guns
Among the Red Guns - meaning Summary
Dreams Persist Amid War
Sandburg's poem observes soldiers amid battle—guns, saddles, muzzles—and emphasizes that private inner lives continue despite violence. It repeatedly states that "dreams go on," suggesting that hopes, memories, or ideals persist even as bodies are broken and warfare dehumanizes. The poem contrasts physical destruction with an endurance of inner aspiration, implying that personal or collective longings survive beyond immediate carnage.
Read Complete AnalysesAmong the red guns, In the hearts of soldiers Running free blood In the long, long campaign: Dreams go on. Among the leather saddles, In the heads of soldiers Heavy in the wrack's and kills Of all straight fighting: Dreams go on. Among the hot muzzles, In the hands of soldiers Brought from flesh-folds of women-- Soft amid the blood and crying-- In all your hearts and heads Among the guns and saddles and muzzles: Dreams, Dreams go on, Out of the dead on their backs, Broken and no use any more: Dreams of the way and the end go on.
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