Diction In Harlem By Langston Hughes

The poem, “Harlem” by Langston Hughes, embodies the ideas of James Gatsby. The speaker asks “What happens to a dream deferred?. ” We can see a connection to Gatsby’s dream of having Daisy to himself that is put off. The speaker then asks many questions

The Impact of the Harlem Renaissance The Harlem Renaissance was an artistic and cultural movement during the 1920s and the 1930s. It was sparked by a migration of nearly one million African-Americans who moved to the prospering north to escape the heavy racism in the south and to partake in a better future with better tolerance. Magazines and newspapers owned by African-Americans flourished, poets and music artists rose to their feet. An inspiration swept the people up and gave them confidence.

Harlem Renaissance “What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore-- And then run?” (Hughes). These lines from Langston Hughes’s Harlem explain the struggle African Americans faced in finding culture and identity after slavery was abolished.

Are dreams necessary throughout a person's lifetime? How would life be different without them? In the poems, Dream Deferred, and Dreams, Langston Hughes demonstrates the struggle of dreaming. In both poems, Hughes captures the importance and meaning of dreams in a person's life by using figurative language to show the significance of having dreams and making them come true.

Gatsby hosts these gatherings to grab attention. When looking at the poem “Harlem” by Langston Hughes, imagery is used to give the poetry movement, to arouse the readers' imagination, and to develop their inner feelings, as well as to give them a sense of the flavor and scent of the made-up world. Hughes uses words like "stink," "rotten," "explode," "fester," "dry," "crust," "heavy," and "sag” (Hughes.) He uses these words to drive the reader's senses to feel, smell, see, hear, and taste this important dream. Also, Hughes vividly compares the feelings of people to visuals of a sore.

In the poem “Harlem” by Langston Hughes, several similes are used to portray the reality of dreams. Hughes employs effective metaphors, inviting us to visualize a dream and what may happen to it after it passes from conscious thought. Could a dream dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or even fester like a sore? (Hughes, 1951, p. 631).

There are many talented poets, but there is something special about Langston Hughes that makes him unique. He has many eye-opening poems. Langston Hughes is definitely one of a kind. The poems Cross and Mother to Son by Langston Hughes, use figurative languages such as imagery and syntax to provide more climax. Imagery.

For example, Langston Hughes says, “What happens to a dream deferred?” (Hughes). This means, what happens when a dream is ignored? This poem was written in a time with feelings of segregation and discrimination toward blacks in America. In addition, Hughes says, "Does it dry up" (Hughes).

At this time, the dream was equality and being accepted as citizens of the United States. Hughes felt that this goal of liberty and quality for African Americans was very hard to reach or match. A poem that resembles this thought well is titled “Youth”, where Hughes writes, “We have tomorrow… Bright before us… Like a flame” (Hughes 39). This poem has a lot of analysis towards the American Dream.

The poem “Harlem” seems like a simple poem that talks about a dream that fades away. The poem is more symbolic than it seems though. The three sentences that have a huge impact on this poem’s symbolism are spread out through the poem. A reader needs to keep in mind that the speaker is talking about a dream in these sentences. “Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?”

Introduction: Daily life in Harlem was exciting, for example, Harlem Renaissance created art, music, and writings. They are overcoming racism and poverty, that influence others. Body: First of all Langston Hughes is a famous writer, he wrote poetry, plays, and short stories about his life in Harlem. (pg 234)

Throughout much of his poetry, Langston Hughes wrestles with complex notations of African American dreams, racism, and discrimination during the Harlem Renaissance. Through various poems, Hughes uses rhetorical devices to state his point of view. He tends to use metaphors, similes, imagery, and connotation abundantly to illustrate in what he strongly believes. Discrimination and racism were very popular during the time when Langston Hughes began to develop and publish his poems, so therefore his poems are mostly based on racism and discrimination, and the desire of an African American to live the American dream. Langston Hughes poems served as a voice for all African Americans greatly throughout his living life, and even after his death.

For example, look at this line: "Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or does it fester like a sore-- and then run?" Doesn 't that put a sour feeling in your stomach? Similes like this are how Hughes helps the reader understand the intensity of what can happen if a dream never comes to life. Using words like "fester," "sore," or, "drying up" evoke an image of the life being like an infection and festering.

Everyone has dreams, but the thing is most people never accomplish them. Some people put off their dreams to the side because something more important than their dreams comes forth. They believe that is better to put their dreams to the side or give up on them and allow their dreams to fade in their minds. In “What happens to a dream deferred?” by Langston Hughes, the poet uses the title, tone, diction, and selection of detail, to express how people are affected by deferred dreams.

The poem that I chose was Dream Deferred by Langston Hughes I chose this poem because it’s a very confusing and very difficult to understand but if you treat it like a puzzle and take the small parts and put them together and understand what they mean you put the whole picture together. The theme of Dream Deferred was the limitations that African Americans had at the time to come and have the so-called “American Dream”. A simile in the text would be “Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun”The author uses this to help his theme by stating that the raisin will become smaller and smaller but it won't disappear. Another part of the poem that contributes is“fester like a sore and the run” this means rejected dream almost physically painful and gets infected and becomes a gross reminder. Finally, the last piece of evidence I could find is “or does it explode” this means that everything is gone and the dream is blown to bits”.