Week 7: Langston Hughes/Vocabulary

The following question refers to the poem “Harlem” by Langston Hughes. Read the poem again, and answer the questions below.

“Harlem”

by Langston Hughes

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up

like a raisin in the sun?

Or fester like a sore—

And then run?

Does it stink like rotten meat?

Or crust and sugar over—

like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags

like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

Question: Langston Hughes creates a central metaphor by comparing a dream that is delayed to multiple images of destruction. What must we do to keep our dreams alive?

The following question ALSO refers to the poem “Harlem” by Langston Hughes. Read the poem again, and answer the question below.

“Harlem”

by Langston Hughes

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up

like a raisin in the sun?

Or fester like a sore—

And then run?

Does it stink like rotten meat?

Or crust and sugar over—

like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags

like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

Question: What are two examples of simile in the poem “Harlem”? AND....What do you think those two similes mean?

This question also refers to the poem “Harlem” by Langston Hughes. Read the poem again, and answer the question below.

“Harlem”

by Langston Hughes

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up

like a raisin in the sun?

Or fester like a sore—

And then run?

Does it stink like rotten meat?

Or crust and sugar over—

like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags

like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

Question: Is the message of the poem “Harlem” relevant to you in 2020? Why or why not?

The following question refers to the poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” by Langston Hughes. Read the poem again, and answer the question below.

“The Negro Speaks of Rivers”

by Langston Hughes

I’ve known rivers:

I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.

I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.

I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.

I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went down to New Orleans, and I’ve seen its muddy bosom turn all golden in the sunset.

I’ve known rivers:

Ancient, dusky rivers.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

Question: What do you think it means to have a soul that is deep as rivers?

The following question refers to the poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” by Langston Hughes. Read the poem again, and answer the question below.

“The Negro Speaks of Rivers”

by Langston Hughes

I’ve known rivers:

I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.

I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.

I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.

I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went down to New Orleans, and I’ve seen its muddy bosom turn all golden in the sunset.

I’ve known rivers:

Ancient, dusky rivers.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

Question: The rivers are significant to the author. Are there any places that are particularly important to you? Give me one example and tell me why it is important to you.

The following question refers to the poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” by Langston Hughes. Read the poem again, and answer the question below.

“The Negro Speaks of Rivers”

by Langston Hughes

I’ve known rivers:

I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.

I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.

I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.

I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went down to New Orleans, and I’ve seen its muddy bosom turn all golden in the sunset.

I’ve known rivers:

Ancient, dusky rivers.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

Question: Why do you think our speaker chose these four rivers specifically (the Euphrates, the Congo, the Nile, and the Mississippi), and is there a significance to the order in which they appear?

The following question refers to the poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” by Langston Hughes. Read the poem again, and answer the question below.

“The Negro Speaks of Rivers”

by Langston Hughes

I’ve known rivers:

I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.

I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.

I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.

I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went down to New Orleans, and I’ve seen its muddy bosom turn all golden in the sunset.

I’ve known rivers:

Ancient, dusky rivers.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

Question: If you were to describe this speaker to a friend, what would you say?

The following question refers to the poem “I, Too” by Langston Hughes. Read the poem again, and answer the question below.

“I, Too”

by Langston Hughes

I, too, sing America.

I am the darker brother.

They send me to eat in the kitchen

When company comes,

But I laugh,

And eat well,

And grow strong.

Tomorrow,

I’ll be at the table

When company comes.

Nobody’ll dare

Say to me,

“Eat in the kitchen,”

Then.

Besides,

They’ll see how beautiful I am

And be ashamed—

I, too, am America.

Question: What do you think is meant by the speaker’s description of being the “darker brother” in line 2?

The following question refers to the poem “I, Too” by Langston Hughes. Read the poem again, and answer the question below.

“I, Too”

by Langston Hughes

I, too, sing America.

I am the darker brother.

They send me to eat in the kitchen

When company comes,

But I laugh,

And eat well,

And grow strong.

Tomorrow,

I’ll be at the table

When company comes.

Nobody’ll dare

Say to me,

“Eat in the kitchen,”

Then.

Besides,

They’ll see how beautiful I am

And be ashamed—

I, too, am America.

Question: Why is the speaker sent to the kitchen? What does this mean?

The following question refers to the poem “I, Too” by Langston Hughes. Read the poem again, and answer the question below.

“I, Too”

by Langston Hughes

I, too, sing America.

I am the darker brother.

They send me to eat in the kitchen

When company comes,

But I laugh,

And eat well,

And grow strong.

Tomorrow,

I’ll be at the table

When company comes.

Nobody’ll dare

Say to me,

“Eat in the kitchen,”

Then.

Besides,

They’ll see how beautiful I am

And be ashamed—

I, too, am America.

Question: How does the speaker respond to getting sent away? What can we infer about the speaker’s character?