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Harlem poem analysis langston hughes
Harlem poem analysis langston hughes
Poem analysis for langston hughes english b
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In the 1900’s African Americans were still not experiencing the freedom that they were expecting. Langston Hughes was one of the most successful African American writers during the Harlem Renaissance who wanted to make a difference. Langston Hughes conveys the same central idea through two unique poems. The central idea that Langston Hughes portrays through “I Too”and “Dream Variations” is that we are all the same inside, no matter the color of our skin. “I Too” written by Langston Hughes, during The Harlem Renaissance, depicts that African Americans during the 1920’s are still being persecuted even though they are supposed to be free.
The purpose of “Why, You Reckon?” by Langston Hughes is to accurately display, through the times of that century and human emotion, that despite money, power, and the color of your skin there can still be an unhappiness of the soul. There is evidence in the beginning of the short story of two men’s unhappiness in life the symbol of them being uncontent was their hunger. “Man, ain’t you hongry.... Well, sir, I’m tellin’ you, I was so tired and hongry and cold that night.” (253- 254).
The narrator shows perseverance through “But I laugh/ And eat well/ And grow strong” (5-7). He is reminding others that the black nation in America is not defeated, but growing, and that segregation will end soon (“I, Too” 100).
Langston Hughes wrote Let America be America Again explaining that he was never an equal or free in America. He also didn’t just focus on blacks, he also wrote “I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart, I am the Negro bearing slavery's scars. I am the red man driven from the land, I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek.” (Hughes 8). Hughes explained that nobody in America is treated right unless a wealthy white man.
By repeating "I am", he establishes credibility to talk about this issue and puts himself into different groups of people so it does not seem like he is the only one struggling with the fight. Hughes knows how blacks are not the only group of people being oppressed so he includes other groups of people. Parallel structure is also found several times in the poem. One example of parallel structure is found in the ninth stanza. In this stanza, the word "of" is followed by a verb and the sentence ends with an exclamation point.
Also, Olga Barrios makes this statement “Hughes’s faithfulness to his idea of an African American artist being true to himself”(Olga Barrios). This quote shows that Langston Hughes has reality checks on himself and other African Americans and other immigrants in the United States of America. This causes Langston Hughes to realize how they are being treated and who is treating them that way. Which Langston Hughes brings out to the public on how they are being treated and calls out the government and wants a change to happen so they will stop treating them like that. So everyone in the United States of America would be treated fairly including all the people the Americans treated wrong, involving Africans, Indians, and other immigrants located in the United States of America.
The theme of the poem, “Let America Be America Again” by Langston Hughes is about equality. There are multiple reasons and quotes hinting to why it's about Equality. For example, Hughes states in his poem, “There has never been equality for me, nor freedom in this “homeland of the free”” (15-16). From this quote we can see that he thinks everything isn’t equal. He put quotes around the homeland of the free to make it seem sarcastic.
In a poem by Langston Hughes we see how he is saying although they are slaves they eat well and stay happy and keep their spirit fresh so one day they become strong and American. “I, too, sing America. I am the darker brother. They send me to eat in the kitchen When company comes,
It talks about how yesterday was a thing of the past and that it cannot be changed. He talks about how each day, African Americans must march on towards their dreams. Despite prejudice, oppression, and poverty that African Americans faced at this time, Hughes points to a positive in that the only way their dreams will come true is if they focus on the present day and what they can do to fix things. They cannot be looking at the past and what has happened. His message to the audience in this poem is towards the youth, in particular African-Americans.
Background Langston Hughes wrote “Let America Be America Again” in 1935 and published it in 1936. The poem discusses many topics, but the common theme is inequality. He mentions several groups of people that have been mistreated and discriminated against including Native Americans, African Americans, and poor people. The poem serves as a plea for better and equal opportunities for everyone.
Kindness Against the World Oftentimes people only need some sympathy to succeed in life. In the short story known as “Thank You, M’am” by Langston Hughes, the story follows a boy named Roger who attempts to steal the purse of a strong and kind women, Luella Bates Washington Jones, who rather then turn him in to the police she takes him to her home, has him wash his face, and makes him eat a meal before sending him back to his house with the instructions to,”Behave yourself, boy!” Using the actions of the characters in the story, Hughes shows that people need the kindness of others for their life to change for the better. At the start of the story, Roger attempts to steal the purse of a stranger described as “a large woman with a large purse that had everything in it but hammer and nails.
All of Langston Hughes poetry illustrated the struggles and hardship African Americans faced in America. Like the poem “Harlem” Hughes poem “I Too” reflects Hughes disdain of racial segregation in America. Hughes is stating that although he is not seen as someone that is worth value in America, and it not treated the same as his white counterpart he is still important and he is American. “Besides, They’ll see how beautiful I am And be ashamed— I, too, am America” (Hughes,Langston). Hughes poem “The South” also depicts Hughes view of racism in America.
Langston Hughes poems “Harlem” and “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” are two poems that have a deeper meaning than a reader may notice. Hughes 's poem “Harlem” incorporates the use of similes to make a reader focus on the point Hughes is trying to make. In “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” Hughes shows how close he was to the rivers on a personal level. With those two main focuses highlighted throughout each poem, it creates an intriguing idea for a reader to comprehend. In these particular poems, Hughes’s use of an allusion, imagery, and symbolism in each poem paints a clear picture of what Hughes wants a reader to realize.
Throughout, the whole semester we have learned about writers and their works. Each writer used different writing styles to portray the message they want to give through their work of art. Out of all story the newest writers, we were introduced to this week are short story and poem that I enjoy reading. While reading the works of Langston Hughes, his poetry made a connection with real life situation that was going on in the early 20th century and now. I, Too and Harlem are two poems that speak of issue today that similar to the 20th century.
In the poem “I, Too”, the author Langston Hughes illustrates the key aspect of racial discrimination faces against the African Americans to further appeals the people to challenge white supremacy. He conveys the idea that black Americans are as important in the society. Frist, Hughes utilizes the shift of tones to indicate the thrive of African American power. In the first stanza, the speaker shows the sense of nation pride through the use of patriotic tone. The first line of the poem, “I, too, sing America” states the speaker’s state of mind.
