An Analysis of The Negro Speaks of Rivers Essay

The Negro Speaks of River: An Analysis Throughout America’s history, blacks and whites have always been at odds with each other. This is mainly due to the belief by whites that blacks are inferior to them. This type of white hatred led to the forming of the radical hate group the Klu Klux Klan. The group’s activities peaked in America in 1920 during the Modernism period and much harm was done to blacks. In that same year, as if answering the cruelty against the African American, young African American

Slavery has influenced how people of African descent went forth and lived life. In the poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers”, Langston Hughes tells a story of the black man's journey to America while trying to hold on to his past. Hughes uses imagery and tone to create a picture that illustrated racial pride and dignity. Phillis Wheatley, “On Being Brought from Africa to America” describes the positivity of being an American slave and the perks of Christianity. The major theme that runs throughout these

“The Negro Speaks of Rivers” - Langston Hughes “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” by Langston Hughes is a 10 line lyric poem in free verse. This poem is compiled of 5 stanzas with various line lengths. “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” doesn't rhyme, however, the repetition of the word “rivers” insinuates transition. This essay focuses on the importance of the word “rivers” throughout the poem because it discusses the origins of humanity and the interplay between racism and equality. Hughes discusses the

challenge. In the four poems by Langston Hughes, The Negro Speaks of Rivers, I, Too, Dream Variations, and Refuge in America, they all talk about equality and the freedom and liberty that everyone deserves. A big message in Langston Hughes poem, The Negro Speaks of Rivers, is the message of freedom. This poem talks and explains a lot about rivers, but thinking deep down it begins to focus on African Americans and their lack of freedom. A river flows easy and is free to do whatever. This is referring

autobiography, and criticism” (Dickson). His famous poem was “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” which he wrote at the age of 18. He made many poems that still live forever. He was a black poet who wanted to express what was going on Americans. His main mission was to get his message across . poetry gave him the opportunity to do that However, there are many differences and similarities in the poem “Negro”, and “the Negro speaks of rivers”, in how Hughes discusses blacks’ pain and suffering, pride in

One part of “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” by Langston Hughes that interests me is “I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins” (Lines 2-3). In this line there is a simile, metaphor, tone, and a universal truth. A simile is a comparison of one thing with another thing using like or as. In this line Hughes utilizes a simile by comparing accent rivers with the age of the world. I think Hughes compared the ancient rivers to the age of the

that persisted even after the abolishment of slavery. One effective means of alleviating racial stereotyping was relating African-Americans to Caucasians within the equality of being American citizens. Langston Hughes, in his short poem The Negro Speaks of Rivers, generalizes not just being American, but the experiences throughout history. Hughes’ poem shows relative cultural and historical events to promote an integrated lineage among all races. Hughes work ethic, style, technique and achievement

Africa. So, their history does not start at slavery. In a recorded interview, Langston Hughes says he wrote the poem, “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” in 1920, after he completed high school. Hughes also credits his source of inspiration to the Mississippi river which he passed, while on the train, to visit his father in Mexico. He acknowledged what the Mississippi symbolized to Negro people and how it was linked

as the most successful African American writes. He wrote about what the world was like for an African American, from the eyes of an African American. In Hughes poems, The Negro Speaks of Rivers, I,Too, Dream Variations, and Refugee in America, he demonstrates how diverse an African American life can be. The Negro speaks of Rivers, expands on the idea that African Americans came from all over the place, they have many homes. They were told that they do not belong in America so they need to move back

Hughes has tried multiple times to reconnect with his father, but it never succeeded. Although Langston Hughes has a complicated relationship with his father it led him to write one of the most well-known novels that gave him recognition: Negro Speaks of Rivers. Langston Hughes was born February 1st, 1902 in Joplin, Missouri. Hughes’s father, James Nathaniel Hughes, left him and his mother and headed to Mexico. Hughes, his mother unable to provide for him, lived with his grandmother in Lawrence