I’ve read so much literature – it’s difficult to keep track and absorb all the colorful and meaningful elements the authors may have wanted its readers to feel, visualize and comprehend about societal themes, expectations or inadequacies. What I never understood before, or bothered to pay attention to, until now, was the purposes of literature – how it characterizes the meanings of life, in a variety of methods, through its departure from youth, personal growth, love morality, revenge and death. What’s more, I realized that some literature is entirely more powerful, momentous, and engaging when read aloud (poetry) or done in dramatic form (play). Furthermore, literature, with its sophisticated intellectuality, varied genres, explicit or simplified diction and language may need to be read several times to enjoy, understand, appreciate and relate what our psyches could be tuning into.

Personally, the first element of literature that connects me to any genre is the author’s usage of expressive language to convey (or not to convey) a particular messa

Consequently, like Hughes’ poem, a short, concise story can be insinuative and rich with symbolism to reflect upon the human experience. When I think from this perspective, I recall Toni Bambara’s, “The Lesson.” This story reminds me of a special experience as a child. During pre-adolescence, I had this friend – I’ll name her Jill. We did everything together. We shared all our secrets, every intimate detail. Thinking similarly to Sylvia, (early in the story), I though Jill and I were unstoppable, street smart and two-of-a-kind – other people just didn’t “get it.” So we took an oath that we’d always be friends, no matter what. She (Jill) very much reminded me of Sugar, (before she had her revelation about poverty and materialism) especially when she had asked Miss Moore: “Can we steal?” (859). Like Sugar, before she understood the lesson, Jill was flawed – she didn’t like to steal, but lie and I would say she enjoyed it immensely – she got off on the thrill of having people believe her. I never really understood it but I often tagged along during her little escapades, unconcerned about the morality of her actions and deceptions; I didn’t think how those lies may have affected everyone.

To recap this genre on a literary level, it encompasses a variety of poetic devices, such as rhyme (sun/run), simile “fester like a raisin in the sun” (my favorite) and visual imagery “crust and sugar over.” But what I see as most compelling is that Hughes chose to commence the poem with an expression of inquiry: “What happens to a dream deferred?” Immediately, I ask myself why he chose this approach before I continued on. I realized after reading that Hughes’ tone was sarcastic – it seems almost cynical and hopeless. When a dream is postponed – or taken away – does it “dry up, fester, run, stink, sag or explode?” These descriptions are not coincid

Some topics in this essay:
Miss Moore, Contemporary Fiction, Thesis Literature, Toni Bambara’s, Dream Deferred, Consequently Hughes’, Hughes African-American, Raisin Sun”, Langston Hughes’, age twenty-one, dream deferred, human experience, “the lesson”, personal growth, literature �, raisin sun”, sugar revelation, believe hughes, � �,