Langston Hughes´ Memories in His Poems Essay - 834 Words

There are countless times as one grows up when you just stop for a second and reminisce on random things. These memories serve for a very special purpose as the things you do in life shapes you into the person you will become. Today, many authors and poets make use of their memories and experiences in their work as a way to reflect back on their lives, raise awareness, or just simply to tell a story. As a prominent contributor to the Harlem Renaissance, Langston Hughes was an inspirational poet who highlighted many aspects of the urban life of African-Americans through reflections of his own life and experiences. As a writer, a poet and a prominent activist of the civil rights movement, Langston Hughes was a man that was not only†¦show more content†¦Through this mindset, Hughes set out to revolutionize poetry and created such expressive and inspirational work just by reflecting on his own life. He also takes into account with the existing racism at this time that was agai nst him and anyone of color. By incorporating his life into his work, it created a voice for those who were not able to speak up and as a result, life met art (The Harlem Project). Throughout his works, especially his poetry, Hughes also draws inspiration from music. He describes the blues as ‘â€Å"sad funny songs – too sad to be funny and too funny to be sad†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ as the songs hold ‘â€Å"laughter and pain, hunger and heartache†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Poetry Criticism). This point of view is noticeably reflected onto his poems when some stanzas are in the â€Å"form of the typical blues song† (Poetry Criticism). In other words, the stanza had two nearly identical lines followed by a third that contrasts the first two and this is seen in Same in Blues where he uses the repetition of the word â€Å"baby† in the first two lines. In his poetry, Hughes captures the voices, experience, emotions and spirit of the African Americans during this time. His poems have also been influenced by the Afro-American life essays written by W.E.B. DuBois and the black vernacular (DiYanni p.700-705). This is shown in Fine Clothes to the Jew, as Hughes addresses the hardship and struggle of urban African Americans in Harlem who left the deep south in hopes of achieving their American Dream. However,Show MoreRelatedThe Life and Poetry of Langston Hughes Essay776 Words   |  4 Pagesin American Cultural History, Langston Hughes was born February 1, 1902 in Joplin, Missouri. Growing up, he dealt with some hard times. His parents divorced when he was little and he grew up with neither of his parents. Hughes was raised by his grandmother since his father moved to Mexico after their divorce and his mother moved to Illinois. It was when Hughes was thirteen that he moved out to Lincoln, Illinois to be reunited with his mother. 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He livedRead MoreAnalysis Of Langston Hughes And His Harlem Dream1639 Words   |  7 PagesLangston Hughes and His Harlem Dream The 1900s found many African Americans migrating from the south to north of the United States in an event called the Great Migration. Many Southern African-Americans migrated to a place called Harlem and this is where the Harlem renaissance originated from. The Harlem renaissance began just after the first world war and lasted into the early years of the great depression. Harlem became the cynosure for blues and jazz and birthed forth a Negro Artist era calledRead MoreSymbolism in The Negro Speaks of Rivers by Langston Hughes1074 Words   |  5 PagesSymbolism in â€Å"The Negro Speaks of Rivers† by Langston Hughes Symbolism embodies Hughes’ literary poem through his use of the river as a timeless symbol. A river can be portrayed by many as an everlasting symbol of perpetual and continual change and of the constancy of time and of life itself. People have equated rivers to the aspects of life - time, love, death, and every other indescribable quality which evokes human life. This analogy is because a river exemplifies characteristics that can beRead MoreThe New Negro Summary Essay1412 Words   |  6 Pagessuch as Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Wallace Thurman, and W.E.B. Du Bois. Langston Hughes is often called the poet laureate of Harlem. His poetry is an effective commentary on the adverse conditions faced by blacks in America during the 20th Century. Hughes placed a particular emphasis on Harlem, an area in New York that was predominately Black, which became a Mecca for many hopeful blacks in the first half of the 1900s. Hughes has a theme in most of his poetry, in other words his writing