my dreams, my works, must wait till after hell

The first image in Brooks's sonnet relates to food, which gives the poem a domestic setting and situates it in a terrain typically linked to women. Indeed, the honey and bread subvert the masculinity of the soldier as it bonds him to stereotypical women's activities and spaces like cooking and the kitchen. Focusing on the feminine symbology and discarding the sonnet’s context can lead to reading “my dreams, my works must wait till after hell” as a poem about a woman who has to endure the confines of being a wife and mother and, in turn, can't focus on herself. On the Poetry Society of America's website, Tess Taylor interprets this poem in the context of repression and womanhood.

Separately, honey and bread can symbolize religion. Throughout the Bible, honey and bread appear, and they are often signs of nourishment and relief. In Psalms 81:16, God promises his faithful honey and “the finest of wheat.” The soldier puts his bread and honey in order as a way to stabilize his spirit. When he tells them, “Be firm” (Line 4), he's telling his spirit to stay strong because he's about to meet the “devil” (Line 11), so he'll need a God on his side and a sturdy spirit.