Langston Hughes I Hear America Singing

The poems, “I Hear America Singing” and “I, Too” relate to the same topic while also having contradicting views regarding social status, discrimination, and patriotism. The poets Walt Whitman and Langston Hughes have very differing perspectives on the American way of life. Whitman tends to see the cheerful part of the American way of life, while Hughes sees a life full of mistreatment and neglect. Hughes' opening statement, "I, Too, sing America" is an obvious reference to Whitman's poem, and allows Hughes to use the rest of his poem as an indirect response to "I Hear America Singing".

Walt Whitman and Langston Hughes. Two highly renowed poets. One of Whitman's most known poems, "I Hear America Singing", is about living the American life; he explains multiple types of people in his piece of work and how they are all a part of America. Similar to this, Langston Hughes wrote the poem "I, Too, Sing America", and in this, he includes African Americans, suggesting that Whitman left some people out. Also saying, that blacks are proud and just as big of a part of America as anyone else. Along with this, both are similar in the sense that they are about people in America. Aside from this, there are three other ways in which the poems "I, Too, Sing America", and "I Hear America Singing", are similar. Becasue of this, the poems

Born ten years after the death of Walt Whitman, there was no possible way for Langston Hughes to ever meet or communication with Whitman, but that did not mean Hughes could not establish a connection to him, or at least his work. In 1925, Hughes wrote a poem titled “I, Too” was inspired by and directed in response to the poem “I Hear America Singing”, which was composed by Whitman much earlier. Whitman’s poem consisted of a variety of different American laborers who “sing” as they do their jobs. This well-known poem never specifically addresses the ethnicity of these singing laborers of the American population, but Hughes sets about to rectify that omission.

Langston Hughes wrote a poem that some believe is in response to a poem Walt Whitman made. Walt Whitman’s poem “I hear America Singing” is basically a description of the people who made up America at the time. The mothers, the carpenters, the masons, the shoemakers, the wood cutters, etc, were all the different types of people that made up what America, said of the poem. With Langston Hughes's poem “I, Too, Sing America”, the poem is making a sort of claim that Hughes’s and blacks alike also have a right to feel patriotic towards and be a part of America. Both poems are pretty similar to what they’re subject is (America), but they are quite different when it comes to what exactly the two poems are mainly focusing on.

Slavery was a time of despair and great pain for many African Americans. Americans today hold a much different view on slavery than all of their ancestors. Slavery is not only suggested but it is illegal completely and very immoral. Back then, blacks and some whites fought to end slavery. The 246 years of black enslavement finally came to an end on December 6, 1865. Many people used art, writing, and music as a way to express themselves during this hard time. Walt Whitman, an American poet, used idealism to show his feelings during this period of time. Another poet by the name of Langston Hughes, who was a black man, who invented a new form of jazz poetry that incorporated both his own style of poetry and gave him a chance

Diction plays a large role in in conveying deep meaning within the two poems. Both writers use figurative and emotional vocabulary throughout each line. In “I Too, Sing America”, Hughes begins the first line using a figurative metaphor, “I too am the darker brother / They send me to eat in the kitchen” (Hughes 1-2). When Hughes refers to the narrator as the darker brother, the metaphor is actually referring the the African American community, not just a singular person. The second metaphor in line 2 attributes to the social divide and mistreatment between whites and blacks. This method of writing is mirrored in McKay’s “America”, “Although she feeds me bread of bitterness / And sinks into my throat her tiger’s tooth” (McKay 1-2 ). The diction McKay chooses to use, urges readers to empathize a feeling of sorrow and animosity towards America. He does this by using words such “bitterness” and “sinks into my throat”.

One of the greatest questions in the American society is, “was America a dream for everyone?” It really depends on perspective. In Walt Whitman’s “I Hear America Singing”, he claims that America was a dream for everyone. In Langston Hughes’s “Let America be America again”, he claims that America was not a dream for everyone. By reading these poems, people really start to think in depth about this question.

The definition of modernism when referring to poetry is “an early twentieth-century artistic” that includes the following characteristics: “the desire to break away from established traditions, a quest to find fresh ways to view man's position or function in the universe, and experiments in form and style…” (Literary). One such poet that accomplishes all this, and more is Langston Hughes, a poet that most people consider a modernist. His topics include; dignity, the American Dream, racism, self-actualization, and many others. He wrote about things that people were afraid or uncomfortable to talk about, which definitely broke away from traditions set by romantic poetry. The poem of his that I chose to analyze is “Let America Be America

Many picture America as the land built on the dreams and hopes of immigrants from around the world. However, Langston Hughes argues that such perception is nothing more than a mirage deceiving people since the start of the nation. Through his poem, Let America Be America Again, he reveals the unjust reality of America by using hortative and ironic diction. Ultimately, he pleads America to embrace the values of freedom and opportunity the country is known for.

In his poem, let America be America again, Hughes focuses on American freedom and equality. His concern was on the socio-economic division in the American society. Relating the American declaration at independence, Hughes observes that the road to achievement of equality and freedom lost. The country has become corrupt and its leaders and businessmen are greedy. The grabbed land and gold making them wealthier during the common American citizen; the Negros, red Indians, the poor whites and immigrants lavish in poverty (Schmidt, and Lynne, 776). They have not achieved the American promise of freedom. Hughes wrote the poem with the

In this paper I will be talking about the similarities and differences in the two different poems. The two poems were written by two incredible poets and were probably one of the best in their lifetimes. The first poem is written by Walt Whitman and is called “ I Hear America Singing”. The other poem is by Langston Hughes and is called “I, Too, Sing America” .Many people believe that Langston Hughes wrote his poem “I, Too, Sing America” in response to Walt Whitman's poem “ I Hear America Singing”. Some people have a completely opposite opinion and say that the two poems have nothing to with each other. Langston Hughes did many things in his life. Some of them include being an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and a

Langston Hughes wrote this short poem as a response to Walt Whitman’s “I Hear America Singing” in which Whitman speaks of the music that comes from the joyous labors and liberties practiced by the American people. Hughes wrote this response to say that there is another music in the background of Whitman’s, the music of the African-American who is expected to remain quiet yet defiantly sings on. Hughes begins his imagery with the usage of “I am the darker brother” instilling a sense of companionship and camaraderie to the imagery of Whitman in his original poem. The use of “brother” specifically being a tool to unify rather than divide and comes with a familial and friendly tone as opposed to Douglas’s fiery and antagonistic one. The specificity

but, the first line of the poem says, “I, too, sing America.” Hughes could be alluding to Whitman’s poem, “I Hear America Singing.” In his poem, Whitman shows how happy the American people are to be in America and working and they express that joy by singing. Whitman shows that Americans take pride in what they are doing. Hughes could have felt the same way and that is why he alludes to Whitman’s

     The voice of one person can send a profound sound into the hearts of people to help liberate one’s mind. That profound sound is seen through poetry. The creative structure and style of poetry creates a different form of writing that can either have rhythm, alliteration or have a direct message. In the poem “I Too Sing America”, by Langston Hughes had a significant message in that he desired to voice his expression on the issue of black oppression in America. Langston basic themes focused on the American Dream and the possibilities of hope and advancement were constantly present in his poetry. The tension between the unrealized dream and the realities of the black experience in

Langston Hughes, “I too, Sing America” chronicles an African-American male’s struggle with patriotism in an age of inequality and segregation in the United States. The poem cleverly uses metaphors to represent racial segregation faced by African-Americans during the early twentieth century. The speaker presents a cry for equality and acceptance, and his words are a plea and a declaration for equality. Although, the poem does not directly imply racism, the speaker’s language suggests that he equates the kitchen to racial discrimination by American society. His word usage signals his wish to participate in a land that he proudly claims as his own despite his personal experiences of rejection.