 The breast, then, may be understood as a more subtle reference to Mother Earth than the nude it replaced.Dickinson described the two reclining figures as sleeping, which suggests that the scene may be dreamed by the old man, who imagines himself as asleep on his mother's body, comforted by the memories of loved ones.Ward suggests that a specific dream Dickinson described in a letter may also explain an important part of the painting's meaning, particularly because he seems to have been reminded of it by the topic he had just been discussing.