Langston Hughes Theme For English B

Through his poem “Theme for English B”, Langston Hughes expresses his will to exterminate discrimination by proving that despite different skin colors, Americans all share similarities and learn from each other. Langston wrote the poem in 1900, when black Americans were not considered Americans. He talks about a black student being assigned to write a paper about himself. The audience is thus the student’s professor – the representation of the white Americans. Since the professor said: “let that page come out of you---Then, it will be true.”, the student began wondering “if it’s that simple”. He then describes himself to explain why it isn’t simple: he is “twenty-two”, “the only colored in class”, and lives in the poor community Harlem.

In Hughes poems, he talks about the dilemma of the difference between black and white from a prejudice state of mind. “Well, I like to eat, sleep, drink, and be in love. I like to work, read, learn, and understand life. I like a pipe for a Christmas present, or records-Bessie, bop, or Bach. I guess being colored doesn’t make me not like the same things other folks like who are other races” (Theme for English B, Ln 20-25), Hughes explains in Theme for English B, that his life is no different than his white professor’s life, and his likes, and

My people is one of Langston Hughes’ poems which is about working class black African American people. In this poem, he compared the beauty of nature to the beauty of his people. My people is a very short poem, built in three stanzas which consist of two lines in each stanza. This poem was written in simple language, therefore, the readers can easily understand what he is trying to convey. I believe, beneath its simple words, this poem depicts the beauty of working class black African American people that go beyond the beauty of physical appearance.

As time has passed humanity still tends to separate each other based on our racial being rather than seeing each other as one human race. Langston Hughes’s, “A New Song,” published in 1938 introduces the idea of a new vision of social relations in American society. Hughes’s original version of this poem written in 1933, does not encompass his growing anger on this subject that is dwelled upon in his published version. However, with Hughes’s powerful tone and word choice throughout his 1938 rendition, his reader is able to understand his urge to transform America into an interracial culture. (Central Idea) His poem voices the importance of transforming society into a multiethnic unity and working-class established through cultural ties between whites and blacks. (Thesis) Hughes voices this crucial need to change through his emphasis on African American’s past struggles as opposed to the new dream, his militant tone, and through expressing the role that the establishment of cultural ties plays in society.

Throughout my life I have experienced many trials that are quite different to that of the narrator in “Theme for English B”; however, there are some similarities such as his life experiences, that can be compared to those of the narrator. In this poem Langston Hughes writes of a man who is given an assignment with very abstract and philosophical instructions for writing this paper. Accordingly, the narrator has some difficulties at first because he thinks of how different he and the professor is, saying “It’s not easy to know what is true for you or me at twenty-two, my age. But I guess I’m what I feel and see and hear” (16-18). Consequently, the narrator realizes the difference between his life in Harlem and the life of his white professor. This causes the narrator to be skeptical of how the professor may receive the narrators’ interpretation of the assignment. Though the narrator and I share similar characteristics and experiences it is the differences that make the most impact throughout this paper. Three major differences are his teacher’s assignment, the colleges view of him, and his life in general. While Hughes does provide much background information on the narrator’s past, he gives multiple examples of his life a student and as a citizen living at the YMCA in Harlem.

Langston Hughes is famous for his many great poems and was a very talented man. He wrote a poem in college called “Theme for English B”. In Langston Hughes’s poem, he uses imagery of racial differences and a bold tone to undermine the teacher’s authority. He also to expresses the universal idea that intolerance often comes out of individual assumption. Langston’s confusion of the topic of the paper causes him to write the entire paper about the paper.

During Hughes’ era, he experienced college as a black man in a group of white students. He was left out because he is black and he has similarities. For me, I was questioning on why I was hated by a group of students who were the same race as me. They told me that I 'm not black enough. I was confused and frustrated

Langston Hughes is an extremely successful and well known black writer who emerged from the Harlem Renaissance (“Langston Hughes” 792). He is recognized for his poetry and like many other writers from the Harlem Renaissance, lived most of his life outside of Harlem (“Langston Hughes” 792). His personal experiences and opinions inspire his writing intricately. Unlike other writers of his time, Hughes expresses his discontent with black oppression and focuses on the hardships of his people. Hughes’ heartfelt concern for his people’s struggle evokes the reader’s emotion. His appreciation for black music and culture is evident in his work as well. Langston Hughes is a complex poet whose profound works provide insight into all aspects of black

Langston Hughes is a famous poet known mostly for his contribution to the Harlem Renaissance. He wrote many inspirational poems that are still read and used for educational purposes. Many of his poems were inspired by his life and his story. One of his many poems entitled “Theme for English B” talks about how his teacher instructed him to write a page about himself and it will be true. In a “Theme for English B”, Hughes uses tone, and characterization to display a relationship between race and writing.

“Although” his teacher is “older- and white- and somewhat more free” and Hughes is colored, they still have things in common that make them a part of each other. Hughes uses this information and juxtaposition to set the tone of the last stanza and to bring the theme together at the end. When Hughes uses the term “American” to describe everyone being a part of each other, this juxtaposes the idea that people are different and similar at the same time. In the first stanza Hughes uses the comparison of Harlem being below the college up on the hill, and then in the second stanza, Hughes lists commonalities he has with people of the opposite color. Then when Hughes uses the term “American”, he is able to juxtapose all of these by saying everyone in this college and Harlem is American, whether one has the title of African in front of it or not.

In the closing lines of Theme for English B, Hughes communicates a tonal shift through the speaker’s confliction with his own identity. The tonal shift begins with the question, “So will my page be colored that I write?” (Ln 27). Hughes’ wordplay describes black ink hitting a white page, hinting at “black” being a category within writing, and creates doubt from the speaker as the speaker is unsure whether or not his writing will be supported by the instructor. When the speaker says, “ Being me, it will not be white,” he is admitting defeat and accepts his fate as being ostracized for being a black author.

Langston Hughes gives multiple sides of how each character feels towards an assignment given. Hughes shows strong characteristics between the narrator and instructor, and how effective situations can become with different races. The different tones towards

Essentially, the speaker feels free to be himself despite facing prejudice in the mid-20th century. This can be hindered due to him having less privilege than his older, white instructor. People of different backgrounds may not always see eye to eye, but they should at least make an attempt to understand each other. The writer’s use of consonance and end rhyme show the need to listen to our fellow human

Theme for English B, written by Langston Hughes is a influential poem that exemplifies the power of knowledge and the change it can bring. Langston illustrates a young African American man who was attending college to better himself by utilizing his individual knowledge and changing peoples perspective on African American. Not only does he show his peers he is more than his outer appearance, but he is also an example to the African community that knowledge can elevate you into positions that goes beyond the restrictions of society. Hughes captured the essence of America at that time and shows us how powerful knowledge can

Hughes is considered to be one of the most influential writers of this movement based on the way he brings into question how racial superiority can exist when people share similar qualities of humanity. Hughes identifies in his poem that his instructor is “white—yet apart of me, as I am a part of you. That’s American” (31-33). These lines serve to show that, despite color, these two individuals can be in each other’s lives in a meaningful way. Additionally, the notion of something being “American” has the connotation of it being unified and diverse. Finally, the speaker concludes this poem by acknowledging that his instructor is white and, thus, “somewhat more free.” Freedom, if truly free, is not something that can be qualified by “somewhat.” This line poses the question as to whether or not there actually is freedom for African-American citizens at this