“Harlem” begins with a question that anchors the rest of the poem. The speaker—implied to be a Black American, asks, “What happens to a dream deferred?” (Line 1). It’s a concrete question containing layers of longing and uncertainty. The “dream deferred” can be interpreted as being one of any number of personal dreams, but those dreams all rely on an urgent and overarching need—the collective dream—for racial equality.

The phrasing of the question, like the poem, highlights how much possibility can be concentrated within a confined space. The word “happens,” which connotes a finite process, or the result of that process, evokes a slippery temporality—a continual present moving toward a definite future event. As such, it matches the energy of “deferred”—a word meaning a specific kind of delay, a withholding that comes as a result of a formal decision and, unlike "happens," implies no particular end time. The passive construction leaves readers wondering who has done this destructive and seemingly arbitrary deferring.

The poem’s tone is simultaneous carefully thoughtful and academic, and at the same time playful and ruefully funny. As the speaker unfolds the opening question, suggesting possible results of the deferment, the conjured images are visceral and simmering with anger.