Sheep Walk, Sheep Run

[jjhunter]

Does the Red King dream
of looking-glass sheep? or do
such sheep dream of him?

asleep no fence can hold them
they step hoof in many worlds

although partisan
dyed-hard dreamsheep represent
pride without rancor

for such sheep flock together
not of a kind but a dream

--
'sheep walk' is a British term for a sheep pasture.

'sheep run' is the more extensive Australian equivalent.

'Does the Red King dream /of looking-glass sheep?' is a reference to the title of Philip K. Dick's 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?'

'The Red King' is a character mentioned in chapter IV of Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass, and what Alice Found There. According to Tweedledum and Tweedledee, Alice only exists as long as the Red King dreams of her, with the implication that the entire Looking-Glass world only exists as long as he dreams of it.

'or do such sheep dream of him'- at the end of Through the Looking Glass, the author leaves the reader with a conundrum: were Alice's adventures her dream or that of the Red King? Carroll's closing poem presses the issue further: "Life, what is it but a dream?"

'no fence can hold them'--the classic sheep dream involves sheep leaping over a fence.

'dyed-hard'- pun on 'die hard', and reference to common practice of modifying the 'body' of a dreamsheep icon by pasting in an image, i.e. 'dyeing' the wool.

'sheep flock together /not of a kind', as opposed to the saying 'birds of a feather flock together'.