Langston Hughes is considered by many readers to be the most significant black poet of the twentieth century. He is described as the adored author of poems steeped in the richness of African American culture; poems that display Hughes affection for black Americans across all divisions of region, class, and gender (Rampersad 3). His writing was both depressing and inspiring at times. His poetry, spanning five decades from 1926 to 1967, reflected the changing black experience in America, from the Harlem Renaissance to the confused sixties. .
At the beginning of his career, he was surrounded by the Harlem Renaissance. New York City in the 1920's was a place of immense growth and richness in African-American culture. For Hughes, this was the perfect opportunity to establish his poems. His early work reflects the happy times of the era. However, as time progressed he became increasingly bitter and upset over race relations. Except for a few examples, all his poems from this later period spoke about social injustice in America. The somber tone of his writing often reflected his mood. Race relations were the shadow of his career, following him from his first poem to his last. The tone and subject matter of Hughes' poetry can be linked to certain points in history, and his life. .
The youth of Hughes is brought out by his poem "Harlem Night Club-, a piece that describes living in the moment. Often children do not consider the consequences of their actions; they act on instinct and desire. Hughes might have been twenty-seven when he wrote this poem, but the spirited, upbeat tempo of a schoolboy is present in his style (Emanuel 127). "Harlem Night Club- is unique in that it describes the integration of blacks and whites in a positive tone. Evidence of Hughes' youth comes from the very focus of the poem: the interracial couples. The entire poem can be summed up as ".a single-glance tableau of interracial flirtation against a background of heady jazz- (Emanuel 120).
In a superficial reading of Langston Hughes's poem "Harlem" (later titled "Dream Deferred") one sees only its obvious simplicity. It asks, and provides a series of disturbing answers to, the question, "What happens to a dream deferred?" (line 1). A closer reading reveals the essential disunity of th...
Despite the huge amount of progress made by women in the workforce, particularly upper class women, I feel that men are still intimidated by women in higher social positions. ... In Donna Langston's essay, Tired of Playing Monopoly, she says, "...it's not just being female, but also being a person of color or class, which makes life a quicksand trap" (Race Class and Gender, p. 131). ... Langston offers a few was to challenge classism and regain social mobility. ...
One of them includes Langston Hughes, a widely known American poet that contributed to the notion of the Harlem Renaissance as well as jazz poetry based on his literary works. ... Overall, Hughes gained a huge recognition for his contribution in the Harlem Rennaissance along with Jazz Poetry as it intrigued many individuals to pursue on reading his other essays and poems!...
Not only had it just become open to African American residents but it was also a huge center for the arts, thus causing many African Americans to create communities there. ... Langston Hughes used his writing to reflect urban life (Haskins, 23). ... Though there was much sadness and alienation, Langston Hughes was always able to show that African Americans were not only the force behind a huge creative movement but they were also a people of strong individuality and togetherness. ... Another poem written by Langston Hughes is called "Negro". ... Langston Hughes, again, mentions the building...
(from Langston Hughes, The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain.") ... In a letter that Aaron Douglas wrote to Langston Huges he described the feeling that he felt towards the Renaissance he wrote, "Let's bare our arms and plunge them deep through laughter, through pain, through sorrow, through hope, through disappointment, into the very depths of the souls of our people and drag forth material crude, rough, neglected. ... Langston Hughes once said "The ordinary Negro hasn't heard of the Negro Renaissance. ...
At this point of time, Gwedolyn was writing in the tradition of Langston Hughes and her peers in the Harlem Renaissance; a writing that mildly political, while still not being militantly confrontational with the issues of racial hardships. ... Gwedolyn Brooks died in the year 2000, after leaving a huge legacy on the face of American literature. ...
The banks also closed, the depression was a huge domino effect. ... All these factors just caused a huge division in the women's movement. ... Langston Hughs was a very influential person during this time, as well as Zora Neil Hurston, who celebrated Black culture. ... Eleanor Roosevelt played a huge role in the Women's movement in the 20s and 30s. ...
The Harlem Renaissance, the rebirth of African American culture, was a huge part of the Roaring Twenties. ... Langston Hughes was also an extremely popular poet who condemned violence against African Americans and spoke proudly of being black in his poems. ...
