Metaphors And Allusion In Langston Hughes's The Negro Speaks Of Rivers

Langston Hughes was the leading voice of African American people in his time, speaking through his poetry to represent blacks. His Influence through his poems are seen widely not just by blacks but by those who enjoy poetry in other races and social classes. Hughes poems, Harlem, The Negro speaks of rivers, Theme for English B, and Negro are great examples of his output for the racial inequality between the blacks and whites. The relationship between whites and blacks are rooted in America's history for the good and the bad. Hughes poems bring the history at large and present them in a proud manner. The injustice that blacks face because of their history of once being in bondage is something they are constantly reminded and ridiculed for but must overcome and bring to light that the thoughts of slavery and inequality will be a lesson and something to remember for a different future where that kind of prejudice is not found so widely.

Hughes began his life in strife and struggles; soon after he was born his mother and father parted ways leaving him with no father figure (Biography.com 2015). While his mother moved around, Hughes stayed with his grandmother. She died when he was a young teen, causing this young boy more grief but also allowing him to go live with his mother once again (Biography.com 2015). Soon after these trials, he began to discover the art of poetry and started composing some pieces himself. When Langston went to visit his father in Mexico he wrote a very famous poem named “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” which tells of the soul of the African American and the heritage within them (Biography.com 2015). Hughes mentions rivers in Africa, tying this poem deep to the roots and showing the journey from Africa to America. During this poem Hughes mentions how “My soul has grown deep like the rivers,” which was an exact representation of many African Americans downcast thoughts during this time period. (Hughes 2017). This poem expressed the soul and mind of the black community during this post-slave oppression. Many white men still held grudges against the different race and still persecuted them daily. This did not matter to the African American community because they continued to push and rebel against the racial injustice. Langston Hughes used his poetry skills to voice the heart and soul

“I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young” (Line 5). Although, the Speaker is not explicitly discussing the history behind the Euphrates, he uses it as the beginning of his story because the Euphrates river was the site of one of the first civilizations (McCannon). Moreover, he uses dawns to relate to the rising of the sun alluding to the beginning of time. He connects the Euphrates river to the beginning of his ancestry and the being of time. After traveling forward through his ancestry from the beginning of time the speaker takes us to the Congo, another great river, which is in Africa where he connects to his people. “I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it” (Line 7). He is suggesting that the Nile, which is another great river is ever flowing maintaining its fluidity, just as his ancestors have acclimated to new circumstances. The pyramids, though great, allude to slavery, determination and ingenuity. Even though his ancestors who build the pyramids were slaves, they persevered to build a wonder of the world. Finally, he speaks of his ancestors in America, “I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went down to” (Line 8-9). The Mississippi river for Blacks embodied pain and humiliation because they were going to be sold as slaves (Hughes). Lastly, the speaker speaks of Abe Lincoln, which to the Negro people of his

In the fourth line of the poem Hughes speaks of the Euphrates River. This river symbolizes the birth of life and the beginning of civilization. This river represents the youth of the African American people. It speaks of their beginning. Then Hughes talks of the Congo River in Africa. This is an image of home for many African Americans. It represents a place of peace and tranquility in their lives. Hughes writes about the Nile River and the great pyramids in Egypt. The pyramids can be viewed as a symbol of slavery to many people due to the slave labor that it took to create these grand structures. Finally the great Mississippi River is written about. Many symbols arise from this river of the South. To many whites it represents prosperity, especially in the time of the Civil War when slave trade was one of the bases of economy. To many African Americans this river may represent the oppression of their people. The image of Abe Lincoln riding down the Mississippi can be seen as a symbol of hope and freedom to the slaves of the South. The very fact that he is on this particular river represents the times of change about to come.

One of the most influential marks in the history of men is the practice of slavery and the abolishment of it. This topic is deeply referred to in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain. The book is plotted between the 1840’s and 1850’s, a period dominated by racial injustice. As far as the book goes, one is able to notice how liberty is thoroughly looked for but harshly found in that era, especially by the black slaves. The reader can notice how Jim, a black slave, is able to find such freedom only in the river. The river symbolizes freedom and escape from society and its discrimination. Furthermore, the poem The Negro Speaks of Rivers, by Langston Hughes, also refers to how Negroes have used rivers as a source of liberation throughout

The poem ‘The Negro Speaks of Rivers’ by Langston Hughes is about a man with a vast knowledge and understanding of rivers. The first two sentences of the poem are similar, as in both Hughes states, ‘I’ve known rivers’. From this the reader gathers that this man has been around rivers and probably lived around rivers. He talks about different experiences he has had on four different rivers. For example he says, ‘I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young’ and this gives the impression that he was around long ago when the river was just starting to form. Another quote, ‘I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went down to New Orleans’ shows a passage of time from

Hughes ushers in the comparison in his fourth line, “My soul has grown deep like the rivers” (Hughes 4). Hughes compares the rivers to the growing of his deep soul. The rivers he talks about in the poem are perfect for talking about something deep like his soul, because the Euphrates, Congo, Nile, and Mississippi are all big and deep rivers. Hughes use of the word deep to describe his soul makes perfect sense in this simile, because if his soul has grown like the rivers and the rivers are deep, his soul must be growing deep too. This quote helps add to the theme of memory and the past, because Hughes remembers how the rivers have affected his soul, just like the past has affected

Langston Hughes uses both Harlem and The Negro Speaks of Rivers to evoke responses from his readers. Both of these poems are profound in and of themselves when simply read given the political and racial tensions at the time, but when read and digested, they can speak to any race, creed, or color. The use of figurative language in both of these poems is what makes them so easy to identify with. He uses blood, deep rivers, rotten meat, and other nouns to allow the reader to process what each of his or her own rotten meat or deep river is. Interestingly enough, when read passionately, the reader could get lost in his or her own story, but it is of upmost importance to remember that Hughes is chronicling the story of African American plight in such a way that allows anyone to identify with it. It is through this identification that allows anyone to develop pride and sensitivity for Hughes and his people.

In Langston Hughes' poem, "The Negro Speaks of Rivers", he examines some of the roles that blacks have played throughout history. Ultimately, the poem asserts that in every one of these aspects the black people have been exploited and made to suffer, mostly at the hands of white people. The poem is written entirely in first person, so there is a very personal tone, even though the speaker symbolizes the entire black race. The examples of each role cited in the poem are very specific, but they allude to greater indignities, relying on the readers' general knowledge of world history. To convey the injustice that has taken place, Hughes utilizes the symbolism of the

Langston Hughes wrote this poem while he crossed the Mississippi River en route to Mexico to visit his father. I can only imagine when he crossed the river he reflected on how generations are interconnected and fluid just like water flowing down the river. Langston connects the two with the line “I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins.” During this time, African-Americans were beginning to connect with and take pride in, their history and culture. The metaphor of the river represents the rich and ancient history that flowed in all African Americans.

The meaning I can identify with the most in our weeks readings is, Langston Hughes “The Negro Speaks of Rivers. I say this because as an African American I feel that I have a deep and rich culture that I have not done enough research for. However, one day I do plan to figure out what is my ethnicity that I fall under. When it come to the time that the poem was written, I cannot relate to it since it was written during a time where African Americans we being discriminated against. Now that not saying that is not still going on in our world today, it’s just not as prominent as it was back then.

Langston Hughes was an African American writer who took the literary world by storm in the twentieth century. Hughes was known for incorporating African American culture into his poems and plays. Langston Hughes did this so much so that per, "Masterplots II: African American Literature" he was "…recognized as the unofficial poet laureate of the African American urban experience…" (Niemi). Hughes has written several poems in his career. Most of them have a theme of racial pride incorporated somewhere in the poems. By analyzing Langston Hughes's writings, it can be inferred that the poems "The Negro Speaks of Rivers", "Negro" and "I, Too" all have the theme of racial pride.

One of his earliest poems, The Negro Speaks of Rivers, was written in 1921, long before Hughes would actually travel the world. However, without knowing the authors background and history, one might think it was written by a wise man of old age. Having only lived in various places in the United States, Hughes wrote this poem of an African American man who has seen the world, full with things many people never get to see, that nourished his soul and formed bonds with humans' deepest roots. The four rivers the narrator is mentioning, the Euphrates, the Congo river, the Nile and the Mississippi river, are all of great importance not only in the lives of all human beings, but slaves in particular.

     Hughes frequently addresses the notion of heritage and the importance of remembering the past in his writing. He elaborates specifically on his own understanding of African American culture and ancestry. In his poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” Hughes compares his knowledge of his people’s past with the depth of a river. The lines “I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the/ flow of human blood in human veins” convey the extreme age and richness of human society, including his own culture. Hughes writes that his “soul has grown deep like the rivers,” indicating that he has learned to respect and admire the customs, beliefs, and history of African Americans and their forbears. His belief in the importance of respect for one’s culture and its past seems especially significant when considered alongside his role as an advocate for African American rights.

In Langston Hughes “The Negro speaks of Rivers”, the speaker sets a tone while makes a connect between himself and the earth he lived on. Rivers have