Suddenly, loud cries of rejoice were heard throughout the church and everyone was pleased to see that "all the new young lambs were blessed in the name of God" (220). That night Langston cried because he did not understand why he did not see Jesus. His aunt had heard him and explained to his uncle, "the Holy Ghost had come into my life" (220). From that point on he did not believe there was a Jesus, since he did not see him in church that night. .
Langston Hughes uses the narrative technique imagery to describe the setting of the essay. The story takes place the night after a big revival, in a hot and crowded church. Langston's aunt Reed escorts him "to the front row and placed him on the mourners" bench with all the other young sinners, who had not yet been brought to Jesus" (218). He sat there patiently waiting for Jesus to come to him. In the meantime, people filled the room with much noise and loud shouts of joy, and happiness.
Much of the figurative language Langston uses in his essay "Salvation" can stimulate the senses of a person. For example, Langston describes the church as hot and crowded. When I was a child I remember entering church and seeing all the people fill up the pews. Everyone packed himself or herself in to get a seat instead of having to stand in the back. This made me feel hot and claustrophobic. Also, Langston's wide use of metaphor and simile helps the reader visualize what he can actually see. For example, when he depicts the men and women who are sitting in the church. He says, "A great many old people came and knelt around us and prayed, old women with jet-black faces and braided hair, old men with work-gnarled hands" (219). This quote is an excellent example of metaphor. The "old men with work-gnarled hands" really helps the reader picture the type of people sitting around him. The description of the old men's hands is so vivid and lively. It makes you think what type of rough work these men have to do in their everyday lives.