Chorus of Dreams from the Gate of Horn by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

It recounts the moment in the myth of Pandora's box when all the evils of the world are let loose. The poem depicts these evils soaring out and spreading among humanity, leaving only Hope trapped inside the container.

In ancient Greek and Roman literature — Homer's Odyssey and Virgil's Aeneid — dreams pass through two gates. True dreams emerge from a gate of horn, while false or deceptive dreams come through a gate of ivory. Longfellow's title indicates that these are genuine visions, not mere illusions.

The Titan is a figure from Greek mythology, probably Epimetheus, who was tasked with guarding a sealed jar filled with the world's evils. He and his brother Prometheus were both Titans. Longfellow intentionally leaves the reference a bit unclear, allowing it to convey a broader sense of mythic responsibility.

This is taken straight from Hesiod's original myth. In Works and Days, Hope (Elpis) is the only thing left in the jar after everything else has escaped. Scholars have argued for centuries about whether this means Hope is a gift reserved for humanity or if it represents a delusion that is kept hidden from us. Longfellow leaves this ambiguity unresolved — the poem concludes with that lingering question.

The secret lies in the existence and location of all the world's evils, contained within the vessel. The gods charged the Titan with the task of keeping it sealed. When it opens, the secret is “out” in the most straightforward way — the evils escape, and the knowledge of suffering spreads like wildfire.

It's a conscious decision that gives the release a sense of being sneaky instead of sudden. Whispers travel softly from one person to another and can't be halted or taken back. This reflects how suffering truly spreads in the world — not through a single dramatic moment, but slowly, intimately, touching everything.

It refers to madness — particularly the wild, uncontrollable laughter linked to mental illness or intense distress. Longfellow includes it with moans and sorrow to illustrate that the evils unleashed are not only physical ailments but also mental disorders.

It appears in Christus: A Mystery (1872), a lengthy dramatic poem that Longfellow dedicated much of his life to. The poem adopts a chorus format—a collective voice similar to that found in ancient Greek drama—to comment on the unfolding action. In this work, Longfellow employs the Pandora myth to explore the roots of human suffering before transitioning into the Christian themes that define the larger piece.