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I Hear America Singing Essay

Decent Essays

In “I Hear America Singing,” Walt Whitman’s message of the American identity is that it is diverse and proud. The fact the American identity is diverse is proven best in the first line, which states, “I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear.” In this line, the word “varied” proves that it is diverse because if something is varied it has a variety of things amassing it. The American identity being proud is proven by the line, “Each singing what belongs to him or her and to none else.” This line proves that the American identity is proud because it is saying that we celebrate what only we have. This celebration evinces that we are proud of what we gain by working. In “I, too,” Langston Hughes’ message of the American identity is proud. …show more content…

This is because the whole poem is saying how the Native Americans were not represented. In the middle of the poem it states, “...here’s a guitar/ for you/ -a chicana guitar-/ so you can spill out a song/.../ big enough for my people/- my Native Amerindian race/ that I can’t seem to find in your poems.” This is saying that her people were not represented. Due to that being her response to Walt Whitman’s poems, she is saying that her people are also part of the American identity and need to be acknowledged as well.

The message that Hughes and de Hoyos are trying to convey is that their races were forgotten in Walt Whitman’s “I Hear America Singing.” This is proven by one quote from each poem. In “I, Too,” Hughes says, “I, too, sing America./ I am the darker brother.” This is hinting that Walt Whitman neglected to mention anything about the African Americans, who are also proud of what they do. In “To Walt Whitman,” de Hoyos says, “-my Native Amerindian race that I can’t to seem to find in your poems.” This line says that, in all of his poems, Walt Whitman never seemed to talk about the Native

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