"Hold fast to dreams. for when dreams go,life is a barren field frozen with snow."
Langston Hughes
Well, son, I’ll tell you: Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair. It’s had tacks in it, And splinters, And boards torn up, And places with no carpet on the floor-- Bare. But all the time I’se been a-climbin’ on, And reachin’ landin’s, And turnin’ corners, And sometimes goin’ in the dark Where there ain’t been no light. So boy, don’t you turn back. Don’t you set down on the steps ’Cause you finds it’s kinder hard. Don’t you fall now-- For I’se still goin’, honey, I’se still climbin’, And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair. In the poem entitled, “Mother to Son”, Hughes’ theme is to have determination and to never give up. The poet utilizes imagery in order to convey the theme throughout the poem. In the first line, the mother starts off the conversation telling her son that her life hasn’t been easy for her when she states, “Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.” Hughes then uses symbols such as tacks, uncarpeted floors, and splinters to portray her struggles. The staircase symbolizes her persevering through everything she went through. In the second stanza, the mother elucidates how she didn’t give up even when she wanted to, and she felt that she couldn’t keep going anymore. This is when the reader starts to see, her caring personality and how she doesn’t want her son to give up because she didn’t. The imagery of the broken stairs describes how badly her struggle was and how hard it was and is to keep pushing threw.
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I, too, sing America.
I am the darker brother. They send me to eat in the KITCHEN When company comes, But I laugh, And EAT WELL, And grow strong. Tomorrow, I'll be at the table When company comes. Nobody'll dare Say to me, "Eat in the kitchen," Then. Besides, They'll see how beautiful I am And be ashamed-- I, too, am America. In the poem, Hughes speaks of freedom and equality.Hughes explains his vision of the future and how he won't be sent to eat in the kitchen, but rather he'll eat at the table with the others. Because Hughes is an African American man, he doesn't get treated as an American citizen. This poem reflects back to the years of slavery. The poem's theme is race and freedom. In "I Too Sing America", freedom is the ultimate goal for the speaker. Although Hughes is treated differently than whites, he's not enslaved mentally. As far as race goes, in the poem it talks about a white household having black servants. It speaks of the day when whites finally acknowledge blacks being their equals. Lastly, the tone in this poem changes. In the beginning of the poem its patriotic. I the first line he states, "I too sing America", which indicates that he's singing the national anthem. However, the tone goes to anger when he speaks about the whites letting him eat in the kitchen. In the last stanza, Hughes tone goes back to patriotic when he states, "Besides, they'll how beautiful I am and be ashamed. I too sing America. Hughes speaks proudly of himself being an African American male and knowing that equality will come soon. |
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October 2014
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