CHORUS OF DREAMS FROM THE IVORY GATE. by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: Summary, Meaning & Analysis
This poem captures the tense moment right before Pandora opens her legendary box — referred to here as a chest — by voicing the dream-spirits that slip through the Ivory Gate to plant a dangerous whisper in her slumbering mind.
The poem
Ye sentinels of sleep, It is in vain ye keep Your drowsy watch before the Ivory Gate; Though closed the portal seems, The airy feet of dreams Ye cannot thus in walls incarcerate. We phantoms are and dreams Born by Tartarean streams, As ministers of the infernal powers; O son of Erebus And Night, behold! we thus Elude your watchful warders on the towers! From gloomy Tartarus The Fates have summoned us To whisper in her ear, who lies asleep, A tale to fan the fire Of her insane desire To know a secret that the Gods would keep. This passion, in their ire, The Gods themselves inspire, To vex mankind with evils manifold, So that disease and pain O'er the whole earth may reign, And nevermore return the Age of Gold. PANDORA (waking). A voice said in my sleep: "Do not delay: Do not delay; the golden moments fly! The oracle hath forbidden; yet not thee Doth it forbid, but Epimetheus only!" I am alone. These faces in the mirrors Are but the shadows and phantoms of myself; They cannot help nor hinder. No one sees me, Save the all-seeing Gods, who, knowing good And knowing evil, have created me Such as I am, and filled me with desire Of knowing good and evil like themselves. (She approaches the chest.) I hesitate no longer. Weal or woe, Or life or death, the moment shall decide. (She lifts the lid. A dense mist rises from the chest, and fills the room. PANDORA falls senseless on the floor. Storm without.)
This poem captures the tense moment right before Pandora opens her legendary box — referred to here as a chest — by voicing the dream-spirits that slip through the Ivory Gate to plant a dangerous whisper in her slumbering mind. These dreams come from the gods, not out of goodwill but out of spite, aiming to spark Pandora's insatiable curiosity once more. Upon waking, she reassures herself that the gods' warning isn't meant for her, lifts the lid, and unleashes chaos upon the world.
Line-by-line
Ye sentinels of sleep, / It is in vain ye keep
We phantoms are and dreams / Born by Tartarean streams
From gloomy Tartarus / The Fates have summoned us
This passion, in their ire, / The Gods themselves inspire
A voice said in my sleep: "Do not delay: / Do not delay; the golden moments fly!"
I hesitate no longer. Weal or woe, / Or life or death, the moment shall decide.
Tone & mood
The chorus sections carry a chilling, chanting intensity—imagine a Greek tragedy performed by its antagonists. When Pandora speaks, the mood shifts to a more personal and heated tone, akin to witnessing someone rationalize a dreadful choice in real time. By the end, as the stage directions unfold, the poem falls silent in a way that feels more foreboding than any words could convey.
Symbols & metaphors
- The Ivory Gate — In Greek and Roman tradition, the Ivory Gate is the entry point for false or deceptive dreams into the mortal realm, unlike the Gate of Horn, which allows true dreams to pass through. This gate symbolizes the line between divine influence and human awareness—a line that the gods intentionally cross.
- The chest (Pandora's box) — The chest symbolizes all human suffering, but in this poem, it also represents forbidden knowledge. Longfellow highlights the act of *knowing* — Pandora seeks to grasp good and evil as the gods do. The chest is not just a box of plagues; it's more like a locked door separating human understanding from divine insight.
- The mirrors — When Pandora gazes into the mirrors and only sees "shadows and phantoms" of herself, it indicates that she is already fragmented and not entirely herself. The mirrors provide no guidance or pushback—they merely reflect her desires back to her, amplifying them instead of holding them in check.
- The Age of Gold — The gods aim to prevent the Age of Gold from ever returning. This mythical time of human innocence and ease represents everything that will be irretrievably lost when the lid is opened — not just for Pandora, but for all of humanity.
- The storm — The storm that bursts forth as Pandora opens the chest is a classic example of pathetic fallacy — nature responding to human actions. However, it also makes the chaos that has just been unleashed more tangible. The outside world shifts the moment the inside of the chest transforms.
- The dream-voices — The chorus of dream-spirits illustrates how divine will often masquerades as our inner impulses. Pandora thinks she's following her own desires, but the poem has already revealed that these desires were instilled by the gods. The voices function as the mechanism of fate, disguised as subconscious thoughts.
Historical context
Longfellow published this work in his 1875 dramatic poem *Masque of Pandora*, which retells the Greek myth of Pandora as a stage masque—a genre blending poetry, music, and theatrical performance that was popular during the Renaissance but was revived by Longfellow for a Victorian audience. By the 1870s, he had become the most widely read poet among English speakers, while also deliberately looking back to classical sources to give American literature more depth. The Pandora myth, originally told by Hesiod in *Works and Days* (around 700 BCE), has served as a reference point for discussions about human curiosity, divine punishment, and the origins of suffering for centuries. Longfellow's rendition is significant for placing greater moral responsibility on the gods: they are not simply allowing Pandora's curiosity but actively provoking it. This shift reflects a Victorian concern regarding fate, free will, and the question of whether people can be held accountable for desires that are beyond their control.
FAQ
In Homer's *Odyssey* and Virgil's *Aeneid*, dreams emerge from the underworld through one of two gates: the Gate of Horn delivers true dreams, while the Ivory Gate brings false or deceptive ones. By having the dream-spirits brag about going through the Ivory Gate, Longfellow immediately indicates that what Pandora is about to hear in her sleep is a lie — or at least a distortion. The gate serves as a warning label that Pandora never gets to see.
Yes, although Longfellow sticks to the older tradition of calling it a *chest* instead of a box (the "box" version is based on a mistranslation from the 16th century). This poem is a scene from his longer dramatic piece *Masque of Pandora*, capturing the moment when the dream-spirits inspire Pandora with an idea, leading her to wake up and take action.
These figures come from Greek cosmology. Erebus is the original god of darkness, one of the earliest beings to emerge. Tartarus serves as both a deity and a location — the deepest region of the underworld, situated even below Hades. The Fates, known as the Moirai, are three goddesses responsible for determining the fate of all mortals and immortals. By calling upon all three, Longfellow tips the cosmic scales against Pandora: the oldest and darkest forces in existence are aligned against her.
The poem places significant blame on the gods. The chorus clearly states that the gods sparked Pandora's passion "in their ire," aiming to bring an end to the Age of Gold and spread suffering across the earth. From the beginning, Pandora is manipulated—her desire is crafted rather than freely chosen. However, Longfellow also depicts her as rationalizing and making choices, which means she isn't completely innocent.
She is nitpicking a legal detail to give herself the green light. The oracle advised against opening the chest, but she reasons that the warning was meant for her husband Epimetheus, so it doesn’t really apply to her. This is a textbook case of motivated reasoning—she has made up her mind about what she wants and is now trying to find a way to back it up.
The thick mist that rises from the chest and renders her unconscious is Longfellow's way of illustrating how overwhelming and immediate the aftermath is — she can't even see the full impact of her actions. This choice also prevents the poem from directly detailing the evils, which is a clever dramatic move: the imagination can convey the horrors more powerfully than any list ever could.
A masque is a type of court entertainment from the 16th and 17th centuries that brought together poetry, music, dance, and elaborate staging. Longfellow brought this form back to life with *Masque of Pandora*, indicating that the poem is intended for performance rather than just reading. The chorus sections are designed to be sung or chanted by several voices, and the stage directions serve as actual instructions. When you read it on the page, you're essentially looking at a script.
The Age of Gold (or Golden Age) comes from Hesiod, describing a mythological time when humans lived in peace, comfort, and harmony, without toil or suffering. In Longfellow's version, the gods seek to destroy this age out of anger—though the poem doesn’t clarify the reasons, it reflects the wider Greek tradition of gods who envy human joy or manipulate mortals for their own disputes. The Age of Gold symbolizes everything humanity is on the brink of losing forever.