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'Junior Addict' By Langston Hughes

279 Words2 Pages
Being one of the most monumental African-American poets of all time, Langston Hughes drew his poetry inspirations and vivid thoughts from the time period he grew up in. Hughes was raised in the early 1920s, which was a very harsh time for African-Americans; colored people were seen as less superior and useless to mankind. “Junior Addict” is a poem written by Hughes that depicts a young African-American boy who is struggling to find light in the dark tunnels of Harlem, using drugs as his flashlight. Hughes brought attention that in Harlem, drugs were abused at a young age to reduce the stress and harsh treatment that African-Americans received. “The little boy who sticks a needle in his arm and seeks an out in other worldly dreams, who seeks
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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).

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First ALot of african Americans didn't have a job or weren’t accepted in jobs. The whites could call a job and get a african american person fired. The poem written by Paul Laurence Dunbar i about how black were were getting treated differently. It was also about how black people had to wear mask because they felt like they had to hide their identity. Then the poem “Mother To Son” written by Langston hughes is about how life can get really challenging sometimes but you should never give up.

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Jazz music filled the streets, people poured into speakeasies, the economy boomed and American spirits were high during the roaring twenties. The Harlem Renaissance played an essential part in making this decade a notable time. Due to the great migration caused by Jim Crow laws, Boll Weevils and industrial jobs available in the North, African Americans finally left their lives of endless debt and farming for a new opportunities in the North. Harlem allowed the opportunity for a new African American culture to be represented. This new culture allowed for African Americans to be able to achieve new dreams.

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Hughes’s grandmother was a prideful black woman, and she instilled racial pride in Langston (Henderson). The separation from his mother and father caused Langston to often feel abandoned, so he found himself at an early age turning to books to escape his reality (Rampersad). In his biography, The Big Sea, Langston recalled “even before I was six, books began to happen to me, so that after a while there came a time when I believed in books more than people — which, of course, was wrong.” In high school, Hughes’s poetic skill was already developed and evident, with him being elected class poet and publishing works in the school paper (Howes 204). His early poems reflected influence from Carl Sandburg and Walt Whitman, whom he had learned in about school and admired greatly.

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Leach, the author offers valuable insights into the early life of Langston Hughes, showcasing the experiences that shaped the prominent writer. According to Leach, Hughes was born in 1902 in Missouri on a wintry night, growing up feeling disconnected from his parents. His father, James, left for Mexico for work when Hughes was less than a year old, while his mother, Carrie, frequently left him in the care of his grandmother as she sought employment elsewhere (Leach 1). Leach emphasizes the impact of this solitary childhood on Hughes's development and later literary work. Hughes's grandmother, Mary Sampson Patterson Leary Langston, shared stories of their ancestors' resilience and resistance, instilling in him a sense of racial pride.

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In American society today it seems that many issues are focused around race and gender. These things have always presented issues in society but they seem to have spiked since Donald Trump ran for and got elected President of the United States. Everyone has seen/heard, whether it be on social media, television, newspaper, or radio, the race issues with the multiple police shootings involving African American citizen, the immigration bans against Muslim countries, and Trump’s “build a wall” statements about Mexico. There has been controversy on gender issues like the debates of how many “genders” there is in society, is sex change acceptable at a young age, is it acceptable at all, gay marriage, and gay rights, along with feminism and the ideals that come

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Langston hughes was born on May 22,1967 langston passed away at the age of 65. He grew up in Joplin, Missouri. Langston’s height was 5’4” tall. , he was born on February 1,1902. The poem was published in 1951.

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In his poem “Harlem” Hughes highlights the limitations set on African Americans. Opening the poem with the question “What happens to a dream deferred?” he then compares the experience of African Americans using a series of dismal similes, illustrating how since Africans were brought by force into America they have endured miserable treatment, and have shriveled up, like a raisin, in comparison with the former glory of the people and culture (Harlem). Hughes further delves into the subject of inequality with his poem “I, Too.” Within the poem he narrates an everyday example of inequality, how he must eat in a separate room simply because of the color of his skin.

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Aside from his highly praised works such as “I, Too” and “The Weary Blues,” Hughes faced heavy criticism for his more in-depth poems. Surprisingly, the judgement came from fellow black writers. Hughes was already under the watchful eye of a few of these famed writers at the early age of twenty-four (“Langston Hughes”). What set him apart from other writers at his age, was that Hughes was in love with the good and bad sides of being black in America. Most black writers wanted to take the beauty of being black and magnify it.

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1409 Words | 6 Pages

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.

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418 Words | 2 Pages

What happens to a dream deferred? … the poem “A Dream Deferred” by Langston Hughes explores the topic of deferred dreams and connects to the reader because everyone has lost dreams. Many people have interpreted the poem in different ways. Nike's “A Dream Deferred” and Khandi Alexander's “A dream deferred” are examples of different interpretations and artistic expressions of Hughes’s poem. These different interpretations are essential to understand because it shows how the meaning of words can change when different contexts, sounds, and visual elements are used.

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Langston Hughes was a poet that particularly focused on Harlem communities, the American Dream, racial discrimination, and the jazz age. However, “April Rain Song” by Langston Hughes does not relate to any of these topics. This poem does not fall into his usual categories, it is simply just a song about rain. Some people would argue that there is a relationship between this poem and the Harlem Renaissance because he did live there at about the time this poem was written. They say that this poem was inspired when Langston Hughes was watching a rail fall over the urbanized city.

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551 Words | 3 Pages

Langston Hughes is a writer, novelist, and poet known for such poetic works as "Harlem," "The Weary Blues," "The Negro Speaks of Rivers," and "Theme for English B. " These poems are some representations of his activist activity against the oppression and injustice suffered by black people. Indeed, Hughes's works are directed at African Americans. These four poems positively portray the joys and obstacles experienced in the life of the black working class.

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1209 Words | 5 Pages

“When you do the best, God will do the rest” – this quote is the lamp that guided me, and always will throughout my academic career. I still remember how uncomfortable it felt when I missed lessons and tuitions due to illness. I never wanted to let classes go unattended. I never wanted to burn the midnight oil when the exams are around the corner. I am always motivated, responsible, enthusiastic, organized and focused on achieving my goals.

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