What Does the Speaker of “After Apple Picking” Foretell about His Dreams?

Answer

What does the speaker of “After Apple Picking” foretell about his dreams?  [NU. 2015, 2019]

Robert Frost’s (1874-1963) poem “After Apple-Picking” was published in his 1914 collection “North of Boston.” The poem is set after the speaker is exhausted from a long day of picking apples and is now halfway to sleep and dreaming. 

Foretelling the Dreams: The speaker begins to drift into sleep and foresees what his dreams will be like. He predicts that his dreams will be filled with images of the apples he picked and the ones he left behind. He imagines that these dreams will be vivid and overwhelming, with “magnified apples” appearing in his mind. It shows every detail, such as “every fleck of russet.”

The Persistence of Work: The speaker’s thoughts are dominated by his day’s work. He cannot seem to let go of the tasks that were left unfinished. He foresees that his dreams will continue to echo the sounds and sensations of apple picking. The speaker says,

And I keep hearing from the cellar bin

The rumbling sound

Of load on load of apples coming in.

This suggests that his work has left a deep impression on him, to the point where it invades his sleep.

Restlessness and Exhaustion: The speaker is so tired that he wonders whether his sleep will be like a long, deep hibernation like a woodchuck or just a restless human sleep. However, he seems to know that his sleep will not be peaceful, as his mind is still occupied with the day’s labor.

In short, The speaker’s dream prediction shows how tiredness and worry stay with us. Even when we rest, these feelings can still affect us.