When you stop pursuing a dream, where does it go? What happens to it? In the poem “Harlem (A Dream Deferred)” By Langston Hughes, this exact question is asked, and in a way answered. He presented many possibilities for what becomes of the dream, and overall, I noticed that none of the outcomes were pleasant. He is trying to show that a postponed goal will perish and become useless to you. Hughes creates a few analogies that demonstrate this idea, which interestingly enough, often involve food..
First used to show that a dream deferred becomes unneeded is a “dr[ied...] up raisin” (2-3). It gives imagery of a grape being left in the sun and all the moisture being sucked out of it. This is saying that when a dream is fresh, it is full of determination
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Pushed to the side, a dream can begin to have things pile up with it. This can cause the feeling of a ton of bricks on your shoulders, weighing you down. Then your mood can begin to change, and you turn into that cranky old man that no one appreciates. An example of this is in the movie Up, Mr. Fredrickson’s dream is put on hold when his wife passes away. And as a result, he becomes depressed and upset all the time, not exactly the kind of person you would like to spend time with.
Finally, Hughes mentions the idea of a dream “explod[ing]” (11). Unlike the other outcomes, in which a dream deferred has one way of viewing it, like how it can change your personality, this analogy could be interpreted in many different ways. My understanding of it would be that the dream would blow up, harming not only the dreamer, but others as well. This is probably the most violent outcome shown, but it could just as well be the most important to conveying the message of the poem. Deferring a dream can cause a lot of destruction and bad outcomes, so it is never a good idea to do this.
Now, let’s take these ideas that Hughes has put into our heads and use it in our real lives. The next time I encounter something that interests me and I would like to one day achieve, I will do my best to carry out what
The poem “Dream Variations” by Langston Hughes depicts a theme and dream of getting out of segregation and violence.
What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?(Hughes) A Raisin in the Sun becomes to be dry. At first, it might be fresh, but the grape is getting dry and becomes the raisin in the sun. In this way, the grape is changed and disappeared.
Dreams can be positive or negative. It is something that has your imaginaries in it, it shows your mental activity and won’t happen in reality. However, in this book, Jeremiah’s son Reuben, his dreams are like a symbolic of reality that not only happen in his mental image also happen in reality. Reuben always act as a witness role of his father’s miracle, however, sometimes he also can predict of some bad things that will happen in the future.
Langston Hughes shows that he is aware the American dream is there and knows that it was intended to be equal but it simply was not due to racist and close minded people. Some people gave up on the American dream and knew that it was too far out of reach but Langston Hughes reiterated that in his poem that the American dream is still there and well alive for the taking for anyone who is willing to work for it. Langston Hughes was also quick to point out the difficult path it was for a person of African descent to gain it but that didn 't stop him from reiterating the fact that it is there and there to be taken. To me, I see Langston Hughes as a man that sees a problem and simply wants to make it known an address is in so that everybody sees what he sees. I also see a Visionary and him, how he sees that America can one day be what it was meant and
A wise, thoughtful man once said, “Things turn out best for those who make the best of the way things turn out” –John Wooden. Many people can agree with this statement and can relate to it very easily. Simple statements, like these, can produce a lot of power. The saying about the glass half full or half empty comes to mind: if you stay positive and never get too down on yourself, then everything will work out. Based on a true story, Margarita Engle uses symbolism and imagery, to create vivid images and demonstrates how one girl’s courage changed music, in the poem “Drum Dream Girl”.
As unfortunate as it is, that tends to happen for most American Dream, and it is depicted all throughout the novel. A perfect example of this is Gatsby’s dream which was left unattainable due to his death. “He had come a long way to this blue lawn, and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it” (Fitzgerald, 2004, p. 136). There was nothing that could deter him from reaching his dream, until his unfortunate demise at the end of the novel. At the beginning of the novel he is first seen reaching out to the light and it is sort of ironic how the book ends in the same spot, but with Nick standing there looking out at the dream that once was attainable that is no longer even imaginable.
¨A dream is a wish your heart makes¨ -Walt Disney. In the novel, A Long Walk to Water, by Linda Sue Park, there are two characters in the story named Salva and Nya, and they both have a very big dream. Salva dreams about his family and finding them and the war being over. Nya dreams about having sanitized water and not having to walk miles, and miles, and having a real home to stay in. Nya is very mature, she walks all day to provide her family with water that’s not even sanitized.
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).
Genevieve Mahoney Mr. Mischinski English 10 - American Studies 2 March 2018 A Raisin in the Sun: An Analysis of The Kismet of Dreams Deferred “What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?” In Lorraine Hansberry’s play, A Raisin in the Sun, Hansberry details the Youngers, a zealous black family, struggling to make their dreams come true in the slums of Chicago. Langston Hughes’ poem, "A Dream Deferred
How Dreams Affect Reality In the works of Chester Himes there is an underlying theme of dreaming. Throughout his various stories Himes uses dreams to function as a retreat for his characters. In his short story “The Meanest Cop in the World”, Himes is able to concoct an entire story that is descriptive and lifelike, which the readers just assume is real. However, when the curtain is pulled back at the end and Himes tells the readers that the entire thing is just a dream the readers are shocked.
Other characters dreams can affect them because, sometimes it clouds their vision, surroundings, and judgement. In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck,“I don’t want you to yell. You gonna get me in
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.
His metaphor puts a final image to the struggle of oppression during the Civil Rights Movement and what happens to a black man or woman when a dream is deferred. Hughes wants his readers to not only imagine but feel how African Americans felt during the Civil Rights Movement when he wrote this poem. He wanted to convey the pain, anguish, disrespect, and ultimately, the conclusion of what may happen to a dream that continues to be deferred. What would happen to a dream deferred?
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.