Langston Hughes' On the Road Essay

In Langston Hughes’ short story “On the Road”, Sargent, desperate for food and shelter, challenges social barriers and racial discrimination during his fight for freedom. Sargent is an unemployed black man during the great depression who faces additional obstacles because of his skin color. While this period was almost fifty years after the end of the Civil War and the subsequent emancipation of slaves in the United States, racism was still prevalent across the country. In the South, despite the

“On the Road” Analysis “On the Road” is a short story written by Langston Hughes, whose major themes are of race, religion, and subjective nature of fiction. An influential African-American writer, Hughes was born in 1902 and primarily raised by his maternal grandmother (Meyer 1032). Over the course of his illustrious career, he would go on to write poems, novels, short stories, essays, plays, opera librettos, histories, documentaries, anthologies, autobiographies, biographies, children’s books

to the poems. For example The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost, The Sky is low, The Clouds are Mean by Emily Dickinson, and Harlem Night Song by Langston Hughes all have different themes. Of the three my favorite is The Road Not Taken because it offers its audience a chance to make life choices. Regardless of the subject, this writing belongs to the genre of poetry. In The Road Not Taken offers the reader a chance to make life choices. In the poem it says, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and

“On the Road” Analysis “On the Road” is a short story written by Langston Hughes whose major themes are of race, religion, and subjective nature of fiction. An influential African-American writer, Hughes was born in 1902 and primarily raised by his maternal grandmother (Meyer 1032). Over the course of his illustrious career he would go on to write poems, novels, short stories, essays, plays, opera librettos, histories, documentaries, anthologies, autobiographies, biographies, children’s books

Walker insists that there is representation to white people when the narrator of the story “On the Road” by Langston Hughes speaks of the church and the snow. Walker does include some nice points, points that one could easily see. Some of her points and observations though, I feel are a bit of a long shot. I have the same feelings towards Walker’s comparison of “On the Road” and the story of Samson. Walker’s first theory is that the snow is “a symbol of the white oppressive world that is making

the Road by Langston Hughes. Langston Hughes offers a gift in this work which is to open the heart and life will provide unlimited abundance. During this literary analysis Langston Hughes uses nature to demonstrate his main character's unwillingness to participate in life. Another point that Hughes demonstrates is the use of anger and survival and how it can be used as a powerful force in breaking down racial barriers. One more impact Langston Hughes uses is Jesus Christ as a metaphor. Hughes uses

take risks will accomplish nothing in life.”- Muhammad Ali. The authors Rick Reilly, Langston Hughes, and Robert frost all have something in common. They wrote about characters finding the courage to do the right thing. These commentaries, short stories, and poems are all trying to send a message. Try to do the right thing when called upon. After reading the texts Doing the Right Thing, Thank You Ma’am, and The Road Not Taken, it is evident that all the main characters found their courage from someone

the Road by Langston Hughes. Langston Hughes offers a gift in this work which is to open the heart and life will provide unlimited abundance. During this literary analysis Langston Hughes uses nature to demonstrate his main character 's unwillingness to participate in life. Another point that Hughes demonstrates is the use of anger and survival and how it can be used as a powerful force in breaking down racial barriers. One more impact Langston Hughes uses is Jesus Christ as a metaphor. Hughes uses

Langston Hughes uses beautiful symbolism and imagery in his literary work “On the Road”. Hughes offers up the idea that if one is to open ones heart; life will provide unlimited abundance. In this literary work, Langston Hughes uses nature to demonstrate and symbolize the unwillingness of his main character, Sargeant, to participate in life. Hughes also demonstrates the use of a person’s anger and instinct to survive and how they both can be used as powerful forces in breaking down racial barriers

In “Liberating Christ: Sargeant’s Metamorphosis in Langston Hughes’s “On the Road,” Carolyn P. Walker talks about what she feels the story “On the Road” is about. She does make some interesting points, but I feel like some of them are not correct. Walker’s main points support the opinion that the story is based on racism and also claims that it is a “Reenactment of the Biblical story [Samson and Delilah]” (749). While racism may be touched upon in the story, I feel that the main point of this story