Langston Hughes 'Poem I, Too, Sing America'

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American social history post-World War I is one characterized by, among other events, the rise of the Harlem Renaissance in Harlem and its neighboring boroughs. This cultural, social, and artistic explosion that took place up until the middle of the 1930s centralized numerous African American musicians, writers, poets and artists and put black culture and history at the forefront of their creations. Famously known as the leader and “poet laureate” of the movement, Langston Hughes gained notoriety by spreading the word of perseverance and equality by depicting the roots, lives and hopes of African Americans at a time when racism was rampant in the American society. Thus, his poem “I, Too, Sing America” published in 1926, is a true proclamation…show more content…
Indeed, the poem hearkens quite strikingly to the times of slavery where African Americans were supposed to be invisible-labor, separated and far from the sight of white citizens. There was a common practice of racial segregation during the early XXth century, when African Americans faced discrimination in nearly every aspect of their lives. They were forced to live, work, eat and travel separately from their white counterparts, had few civil or legal rights, were often victims of racial violence, and faced economic marginalization in both the North and the South. By describing…show more content…
Hughes suggests that even though the circumstances are very different for African Americans, they also deserve to experience such patriotism and sense of national inclusivity. Finally, the fact that the poem was written a few years after the end of World War I, in which numerous African Americans participated as an effort to show support, may also be an explanation of the apparent patriotism. However, the same facts may equally trigger anger as no recognition or thankfulness was shown to those African Americans who fought for their country. This may explain the sense of “silent revolution” inexplicitly stated in the text as the protagonist “laughs,” “eats well,” and “grows strong” to then make the white man “ashamed” of his behavior as he sits and eats at the same table. This nevertheless clearly foreshadows
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