Langston Hughes Harlem Renaissance

Langston Hughes once said, “We Negro Writes, just by being black, have been on the blacklist all our lives. Censorship for us begins at the color line.” To me I believe his writing was expressing African Americans in his time. Many of them felt just by the color of their skin, they had to be constantly aware of their survival, rights and freedom to express themselves through their abilities.

Langston Hughes, a gentleman of color who was a leader to the African American community is a poet, who according to an editor of “Harlem Renaissance” portrayed the truth rather than a sugar-coated version of how life was in Harlem, the hub of the black community. Langston Hughes’ poem “Harlem” describes how colored people live in poverty, in the poem “Dream Variations” Hughes’ dream was symbolized by nature, and in the short story “Slave on the Block,” racism and life of a domestic slave are shown from his point of view. The time when these pieces of work were created was an era when black artistry was opening the eyes of white America to how poorly Afro Americans were treated; this movement was called the Harlem Renaissance, as said in “Harlem Renaissance”. In this movement, Hughes was a force of nature that pursued equality among all races, yet still maintaining integrity and pride. White America was not a welcoming place for people of melanin, white people were not sentimental or generous with them so people say it was more described as, “The cold, uncaring atmosphere of the United States were for blacks discrimination, racism, and often brutal treatment were a feature of everyday life” (“Dream”). Not only did Hughes have to endure the pain of this treatment but so did all colored people.

I read this poem for the first time in African American Literature class my sophomore year at the University of Tennessee. Dr. Margaret Hartsell taught the class. She was one of those hard-nosed professors that you never forget. Her most important lesson was to develop a passion for learning. We analyzed Langston Hughes’ poetry and his influence on the Harlem Renaissance. Many historians believe that he was the most influential and prominent literary figure during the era. When Langston Hughes wrote this poem the Harlem Renaissance was a distant memory for many blacks in Harlem and throughout the nation. Harlem, the mecca of African American life and the country’s most vibrant city became a war zone contaminated with crime, drugs, poverty,

Hughes, who clearly understood a fellow African American poet’s deep desire to be considered a poet and not a Negro poet, as that poet’s wish to look away from his African American heritage and instead absorb white culture, Hughes’ essay spoke to the concerns of the Harlem Renaissance as it celebrated African American creative innovations such as jazz, spirituals, and literary work of the African American life. Hughes, saw this issue at hand to be the challenge African Americans Art in America. This was the urge within the race toward whites, the desire to influence racial individuality into the mold of American standardization, and to be as little Negro and as much American

At first glimpse of the poem, one might believe that the poem is written from an oppressed black person’s perspective. However, after further analyzing the true meaning of the poem, the speaker of the poem becomes indistinguishable. The outlook of the poem is clearly stated through a black person’s lens, but the background of the black person is unknown. This poem could have been written from a variety of different upbringings of black people: a past slave, a current servant, or even a black person who was forever free. The criticism Hughes faced for supposedly writing about the hardships black people endured is quite clear because there is no distinct subject of this poem. The black community of the Harlem Renaissance celebrated writing and music to alleviate the pain they endured through history up until that point. Sadly, Hughes’ I Too does not alleviate that pain. Instead, it acts as a deterrent to the joy blacks experienced during the Harlem Renaissance because his poem has a high degree of

Langston Hughes is an exceptional writer who uses various techniques to fabricate excellent pieces of literature. His proficiency in writing can be witnessed in the poem ‘Harlem’ where he talks about the dreams of a neighborhood. Hughes utilizes short phrases and metaphors to explain the leftovers of dreams.

Langston Hughes, the most memorable figure of the Harlem Renaissance, wrote everything from plays, short stories, novels, and most importantly poetry. Hughes’ writing is based on his personal views on frustration that he had towards the plight of African Americans. Langston has no fear with anything he is involved in and stood up for his people. Unfortunately, his people responded negatively towards his actions, for they thought he was creating more racial tensions. Nevertheless, this was not Hughes’ intentions, and he was proud of his doings. Langston Hughes used his writings to reflect his thoughts about racial oppression, literary movement, and personal experience.

Langston Hughes was born during a time of blatant racism and discrimination. He was a voice for black America in the 1920s, and his poems have endured with a never-ending passion for justice and racial equality. His poems have a strong positive message, albeit his frustration for his country, which did not allow him to sit at the table of his white counterparts, as in “I, Too.” Hughes wanted to live equally among others, to feel an undeniable part of the free America he loved.

Langston Hughes was an American poet during the Harlem Renaissance. His literature and other artistic forums filled Manhattan during the 1920’s and is still admired today. His writing not only promoted African-American culture but also brought attention to the injustice and repression of the African-American race. Hughes poems “I, Too” and “Theme for English B” further his views on equal civil rights and the horrible treatment by law on the African-American race.

Hughes was one of the boldest African American writers of this time that expressed his thoughts about the equality of his people. Segregation and racism were prevalent in America during Langston’s lifetime. In fact, he witnessed this firsthand. This sparked Hughes’s desire

“We Negro writers, just by being black, have been on the blacklist all our lives. Censorship for us begins at the color line” (AfricanAmericanQuotes). Langston Hughes was an African American poet who made poetry that reflected what he witnessed in the urban communities throughout his life. Langston Hughes’ poetry spoke the words, feelings, and hardships that African Americans had to live with on a day to day basis. Though bi-racial, Langston Hughes knew very clearly what was hard for the typical African American, what was emotional unsettling for the typical African American, and what seemed unclear for the typical African American. His poems like The Weary Blues, The Negro Speaks of Rivers, and Harlem reflected that he knew this very well. The formula Langston Hughes used in his poetry not only got the attention of his peer African Americans, but it also got the attention of White America. By using his figurative language, tone, diction, and sound he was able to do so.

Langston Hughes was a pioneer of African-American literature and while he wrote an abundance of short stories, essays and plays, he is most well-known for his poetry. The innate genius behind these poems was that he wrote about the everyday lives of American men and women using simple and easily relatable language to invoke a sense of grand importance that most people could understand.

His mother moved to Michigan, and his father moved to Mexico to escape the discrimination the South offered to African-Americans. Hughes attended Columbia University in 1920, but only completed one year. He worked various jobs as a merchant seaman, night club in Paris, and a busboy in Washington D.C. Hughes also covered the Spanish-American War and was part of the American Communist party. In one of Hughes's essay titled, "The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain," he outlined his philosophy on the Harlem Renaissance and saw the problems ahead of black artists: "One of the most promising of the young Negro Poet," meaning, I believe, "I want to write like a white poet," meaning subconsciously, "I would like to be a white poet;" meaning behind that, "I would like to be white." And I was sorry the young man said that, for no great poet has never been afraid of being himself." (Shoomp.com). the quote itself sums up what African-Americans artists have to face during this time. Whites dominated the literary industry and black artists had a chance to overcome the adversity, but knowing the consequences and timid to be themselves, ultimately led to the Harlem Renaissance and the upcoming poet, Langston

Langston Hughes, a gentleman of color was a leader in the African American community. He is a poet, who according to an editor of “Harlem Renaissance” portrayed the truth rather than a sugar-coated version of how life was in Harlem, the hub of the black community. Langston Hughes’ poem “Harlem” describes how colored people live in poverty, in the poem “Dream Variations” Hughes’ dream was symbolized by nature, and in the short story “Slave on the Block,” racism and life of a domestic slave are shown from his point of view. The time when these pieces of work were created was an era when black artistry was opening the eyes of white America to how poorly Afro Americans were treated; this movement was called the Harlem Renaissance, as said in “Harlem Renaissance”. In this movement, Hughes was a force of nature that pursued equality among all races, yet still maintaining integrity and pride. White America was not a welcoming place for people of color, because white people were not sentimental or generous with them so people say it was more described as, “The cold, uncaring atmosphere of the United States were for blacks discrimination, racism, and often brutal treatment were a feature of everyday life” (“Dream”). Not only did Hughes have to endure the pain of this treatment but so did all colored people.

Interestingly, Hughes’s knowledge inspired him to describe the challenges facing African-Americans in America in his works. In his book, “A Historical Guide to Langston Hughes”, Steven A. Tracy writes of Hughes that he, “helped charm the American audience to the future of ethnic equality...” (23). In fact, Hughes writings about African-American experiences living in