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History in Langston Hughes's Negro
The topic of Langston Hughes's Negro deals with an extremely
general description of the history of African Americans or blacks from the
pre-1922 era until 1922. Hughes lets the reader know about historic
experiences of blacks to show us the impact that blacks have had in past
eras. He touches on past, historical events, like the days of Caesar and
the Belgians...in the Congo (5 and 15). The murderous oppression that
Hughes speaks about uncovered when he says, They lynch me still in
Mississippi (16). Hughes has made his poem more understandable by the use
of such elements as setting and situation, speaker, tone and diction,
images, and symbols.
The title, Negro, explains two items in one word: who is the
subject and what the poem is about. Hughes identifies himself by saying,
I am a Negro (1 and 17). Then Hughes describes the works of the Negro by
using the terms slave, worker, singer, and victims (4, 7, 10, and
14). The first example is a situation that has taken place in Africa;
the second in the United States. Finally, Hughes uses repetition of the
first and last stanza to conclude his poem. To thoroughly understand the
point that Hughes is making, one must take an enhanced inspection at
certain elements that Hughes uses throughout the poem.
In Negro, Hughes gives the reader a compact visual exposé of the
historical life of blacks. He does not tell the reader in detail about
what has happened to blacks; therefore, Hughes allows these actual accounts
to marinate in the mind of the reader. Instead of saying that he[Hughes]
is a black man living in America, he simply says that I am a Negro (1 and
17). He does not create a mysterious aura about blacks, but leaves that up
to the reader. Thinking, on the reader's behalf, plays a major part in
understanding Negro. The different meanings that this poem has is
entirely left for the reader to discern.
The setting of Negro is 1922, the year in which it was written.
A time when blacks were often treated badly because of their race. A
limited account of the history of blacks, Hughes could recite this poem to
a group with any racial makeup at any given location. Someone could ask
Hughes, Who are you? The answer to that question can be this poem.
Hughes is possibly the speaker of the poem, but clearly this speaker
symbolizes all blacks in America. The continuous usage of I've before he
names a description demonstrates the bond that he feels with his ancestors
(4, 7, 10, and 14). Hughes makes use of the pronoun in my Africa to
reveal the possessive emotional ties he has with Africa (3). When Hughes
says, I've been a victim...They lynch me still in Mississippi, we see his
real feelings (16). Since, in 1922, the reading audience consisted of a
predominantly white makeup, he waits until the end of the poem to reveal
his real agenda because he wants people to understand that oppression of
the past is still prevalent today.
Hughes wants everyone that reads this poem to understand its
meaning; therefore, the diction that Hughes uses is very basic and easy to
understand. To represent all blacks in America, Hughes chooses to use the
pronoun I. The beginning of the original and final stanza is I am a
Negro; Hughes is emphasizing to the reader the collective voice that he is
using (1 and 17). He uses well recognized landmarks, that are familiar to
us, to describe points of his interest such as building the pyramids,
[making] mortar for the Woolworth Building, and [making] ragtime (5, 6,
13). With the structure of the sentence arrangements, Hughes tells us
either what has happened to blacks or what blacks have done; so all can
understand his need to identify himself and describe in writing the real
record of blacks. He, however, avoids dialect or lofty prose to reach his
audience. Hughes's diction thus reflects his tone. He wants his poetry to
be direct, comprehensible and the epitome of simplicity (Meyer 884).
Moreover, Hughes uses a plethora of images in Negro to reinforce
the oppression that blacks were experiences. Black as the night is
black,, gives the reader the idea that blacks are as dark as night (2).
Black like the depths of my Africa., creates a mysterious, fictionalized
character of blacks (3). Hughes allows the reader to recognize the
accomplishments of blacks by saying blacks built the Great Pyramids of
Africa and the Woolworth Building here in America (8 and 9). They lynch
me still in Mississippi., portrays how the blacks were still victims in
1922. The enslavement period is referred to when Hughes says that he
brushed the boots of Washington (6). Hughes refers to the making of
ragtime which tells us of the musical impact that blacks have had in
America (13).
Hughes uses numerous symbols in Negro to mirror the significance
of his images. The building of the pyramids represents the knowledge of
architecture and mathematics that blacks have in Africa and America (8).
The use of Negro has a symbolic meaning attached to it (1 and 17). That
is the acceptance of society's labeling of blacks. Black and night
have a mysterious meaning that is often referred by the white, reading
audience in the 1920s (2, 3, 18, and 19). Although these are very
general, we get a actual sense of black presence throughout history.
Clearly, this theme is not new to a 20th century reader because we
now know of this history that Hughes is explaining. However, we
experience the uncommonly true fear faced in the 1920s. Hughes shows us
that there is more than one way to explain matters. He seduced us into
thinking Negro was about being labeled, yet surprising us in the end
uncovering the ongoing lynching of blacks in the South (16). Hughes made
it a point not to unveil what he really wanted us to see until he gave us a
brief lesson in history.
Word Count: 1011
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