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I, Too by Langston Hughes (Tone (Stanza #3 (Warming), Stanza #4 (Calm &…
I, Too by Langston Hughes
Poem's Background
Langston Hughes responds to Walt Whitman's poem, "I hear America Singing." He gently reminds him of the presence of black Americans and that their contributions to the society matter. Walt Whitman's failure to mention the black people of America was most likely an honest mistake as he was mentioning the working classes he was familiar with, and thus Hughes response was not harsh.
Summary
The poet introduces the poem with "I, too," indicating that he is responding to someone, most likely a white counterpart since he says, "I am the darker brother." The poet describes how easily black people and their contributions to society are forgotten in America. He expresses this through imagery that was used throughout the poem to convey his idea.
He says that black slaves are often ordered to eat in the kitchen where they cannot be seen by guests. The poet ends the poem with a hopeful note, saying that one day he, along with all African Americans will be recognised as equals and white people will one day regret their actions.
Tone and Mood
Mood
excitement, to see what will this person who eats in the kitchen achieve, excitement about that day that he gets to eat outside of the kitchen
Tone
confident, in a way to prove his victory of equality between races and to achieve that vision.
Figurative language
- The act of “Eating in the kitchen” symbolizes the oppression and discrimination that African Americans faced back then.
- The title “I too sing America” is an allusion to Walt Whitman’s poem “I hear America singing”
- “I am the darker brother” is both an imagery and a metaphor to the African American population
- “Table” symbolizes power and equality
Sound device
- “Eat well” and “Grow strong” are multiple stresses
- “Too” is a caesura to express the strong desire of seeking equality
- There is an enjambment between “dare” and “say”
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Structure
Free verse, 8 short lines, has no rhyme scheme nor does it have a metric scheme, each stanza is split up into two sentences
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Author's background
Langston Hughes was a central figure in the Harlem Renaissance, the flowering of black intellectual, literary, and artistic life that took place in the 1920s in a number of American cities, particularly Harlem. He sought to honestly portray the joys and hardships of working-class black lives, avoiding both sentimental idealization and negative stereotypes. This approach was not without its critics. Much of Hughes’s early work was roundly criticized by many black intellectuals for portraying what they thought to be an unattractive view of black life.
Relevance to modern life
Hughes's gentle demand for black people to be included in works of art and pop culture is still relevant to this day. With current pop culture not being inclusive and the whitewashing of various stories and scenarios in the world of Hollywood leaves black people, as well as other races, left out and robbed of the representation they deserve.
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Title
The title of the poem suggests that the author is excluded from a group that he believes he should be a part of, or people believe that he does not posses a characteristic that he believes he does.
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Connotation
After reading the poem the title essentially has the same meaning that it did before, after reading the poem we see that Hughes is talking about being a part of America and being one and the same as any other human being. Hughes speaks about their rise from slavery and the former slaves being treated as equal and maybe even feared.
Audience
Speaker's thoughts, perhaps to other African Americans
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