molly13+Over+all+idea+of+the+poem.

The over all idea of the poem, "We Wear the Mask" is that everyone has their problems and issues but no one really necessarily has to see them. When Dunbar says, "We wear the mask that grins and lies," he is saying that when we wear this "mask" of ours, people can not see what is really going on inside of us. The mask deceives people and makes it appear that everything is fine, when in reality it is not. Also when he says, "It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes, —" a persons eyes are one of the non-verbal ways that you can see how they are feeling or even sometimes if they are being truthful. If the mask shades a persons eyes then everyone else has no way of knowing what is really going on, but Dunbar makes it clear that that is exactly how he wants it. Lastly when he says, "But let the world dream otherwise," he is saying that even though this "mask" is obviously not the real face of the person, the rest of the world believes it to be. It kind of seems like even though Dunbar is saying that the mask is clearly there for a reason that he wants someone to be able to see past the mask, to know that it is not real. Really, that's what everyone wants, he wants someone to care enough to look and know that it is not real, but it seems that no one can.