Langston Hughes: A Boy Who Lost His Faith
A Boy Who Lost His Faith In Langston Hughes’ narrative “Salvation,” Hughes claims that he lost his faith in God because of his inability to see Jesus. Langston Hughes supported his thesis by giving vivid descriptions of the reflections he had about his spiritual encounter at his church when he was an early teen. The audience Hughes may have been trying to target was people who most likely were uneasy or doubted whether or not to have faith in their religion. Hughes’ purpose of the narrative essay was to explain to his audience of his personal experience while receiving salvation, in order to get a better understanding about why he lost faith in his religion due to innocence. Hughes’ inability to see Jesus was illustrated to the audience by …show more content…
This way the reader is able to put him or herself in Hughes’s shoes and get to feel the pressure that was being put into the situation. With the dialogue the reader can connect with the story having this sense of understanding as to what the author was going through, almost feeling as though the dialogue is meant for the reader their self. Hughes description of the church helps the reader to envision the setting that the author was in at that time. All of this contributes to the connection between the reader and the author. Hughes adds pressure to the situation by repeating the phrase “Why don’t you come?” This shows Hughes frustration that he cannot see Jesus and can no longer wait. Hughes feels that he is holding everything up and disappointing everyone. The pressure reaches its peak when he becomes the last one on the mourner’s bench after Westley was saved. He creates a vivid image of what it was like to be under that much pressure and to just do what his aunt and the church wanted. He informs the audience that he lost his faith in this statement “But I was really crying because I couldn’t bear to tell her that I had lied and that I hadn’t seen Jesus, and that now I didn’t believe there was a Jesus any more, since he didn’t come to help me” (Hughes,
How Does Langston Hughes Use Syntax In Salvation
601 Words | 3 PagesFew religions outline the exact steps towards salvation. They follow this practice with the belief that no mortal can truly know whether they will see heaven’s pearly gates, even if he or she spends years knocking on doors with tracts and Bibles in hand. In Langston Hughes’ “Salvation,” however, a church in the midst of a revival pleads and shouts that a young Hughes simply needs to see Jesus to be saved. But when Hughes can’t see Jesus, he loses faith in both salvation and himself. To help his readers understand his younger self’s reasoning for his loss of faith, Hughes manipulates his syntax to immerse the audience in his naive 13-year-old mind.
Loss Of Faith In Year Of Wonders By Geraldine Brooks
633 Words | 3 PagesHe witnesses the pain and death in his town and feels unable to do anything about it. His spiritual crisis is typical of those who experience such catastrophic situations as they try to reconcile their trust in a loving God with the existence of such great
Examples Of Lying In The Crucible
1857 Words | 8 PagesOdria Boghozian AP Lang Period 6 10/17/17 Is it ever justifiable to lie? It is proven by writers in the past years of literature that almost all people lie. The writers’ stories and articles tell a story of real life experiences and/or quite often they write fictional stories to show how a person might lie.
Langston Hughes Salvation Theme
964 Words | 4 Pages“Then I was left all alone on the mourners ' bench. My aunt came and knelt at my knees and cried, while prayers and song swirled all around me in the little church. The whole congregation prayed for me alone, in a mighty wail of moans and voices. And I kept waiting serenely for Jesus, waiting, waiting - but he didn 't come. I wanted to see him, but nothing happened to me.
Langston Hughes Salvation Analysis
439 Words | 2 PagesIn “Salvation” by Langston Hughes, he recalls a time from his childhood when he was at church. All the children of the church were being “saved” until he was eventually the last one who wasn’t. Feeling tired and pressured, Langston stood, declaring he had been saved. He felt horrible for lying, but the pressure placed upon him by the entire church outweighed the feeling of guilt. Similarly, people of all types experience a feeling similar to Langston’s; something called peer pressure.
Langston Hughes Salvation
831 Words | 4 PagesWriting about controversial subjects can often be difficult; however Hughes executed his story, Salvation, in an intriguing manner that is suitable to all audiences and religions. In this story, the writer retells an experience from his childhood describing his journey to Jesus Christ. Discussing the complications, the main character, Hughes, faced while trying to come to Jesus is what makes the story interesting to read. On many occasions, you will read a story or watch a movie that shows the main character coming to Jesus and having an immediate and obvious realization of their Savior. For this reason, I found this story to be unique and relatable in the way that it shows a journey that countless Christians face, but you are not often granted the opportunity to read about this type of experience.
Imagery And Irony In Langston Hughes's 'Salvation'
894 Words | 4 PagesIn “Salvation,” Langston Hughes presents his momentous coming-of-age story as a dark and saddening ending to his childhood that provides the reader with understanding of the loss of innocence; and faith he faced and how it impacted who he came to be. Hughes makes a strong implication that children become less and less innocent over time. Hughes himself proves that through the tone of his entire essay. It begins with a light toned; yet still ironic introduction, but ends with a dark, depressing final line. Hughes supplies his reader with multiple literary devices such as imagery, flashbacks, and irony to present this comparison of his younger self and his older self.
Night Elie Wiesel Quotes
571 Words | 3 PagesHis experience with those horrific things changed him as a young boy. He lost his innocence and lost his individuality in the camp. When he looked into the mirror, the boy staring back at him was a stranger. He looked like a ghost, weak, and had no emotion. He noticed how the camp took
Rhetorical Analysis On Salvation
610 Words | 3 PagesLangston Hughes used rhetoric words in his story “Salvation,” to provide foreshadows, and emotional appeals to his struggles in becoming religiously saved. Hughes began his story by stating “I was saved from sin when I was going on thirteen (179).” The irony in this opening is that Hughes initially believed in the presence of Jesus, but unexpected pressures pushed him to betray and deceive his faith. The setting of Hughes struggles took place in a religious ceremony in his Auntie Reed’s church. In this service, many young children like Hughes were gathered to be spiritually cleansed by the light of Jesus.
Shifting Attitude Toward Salvation In Langston Hughes's Essay '
102 Words | 1 PagesLangston Hughes 's shifting attitude toward salvation in his essay was disappointing and at the same time upsetting. He 's disappointed and upset because he was forced to believe in the situation that something will happen to him inside before he accept Jesus but instead it did not happen. Most of the time we are pressured to accept an idea of what others belief, not because we agree to it but instead we intentionally do it for them to stop asking. Some felt the guilt after, and do something about it but most of the time we just let it go and move on.
Christ Figure In Jane Eyre
710 Words | 3 PagesAll through the ages, the Christ figure archetype has appeared in literature and film. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry gives himself to Voldemort purposefully sacrificing himself for the benefit of the Wizarding World. In doing this he becomes the “Savior” and functions as a Christ figure in the novel. The Christ figure also emerges in real life, as anyone who acts as a role model and demonstrates moral fiber at an enormous cost to him or herself. In Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, Helen Burns serves as a Christ figure in the novel and her fundamental role is to illustrate and reveal the pivotal Christian belief of forgiveness to Jane.
Epiphany In Langston Hughes's 'Salvation'
235 Words | 1 Pages“Salvation” is a short story by Langston Hughes describing a boy when he discovered a significant truth about faith and religion. The last paragraph of “Salvation” functions as an epiphany for the boy. An epiphany is an experience of sudden and striking realization. It can also mean the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles as represented by the Magi. This event helps shape the boy’s religious understanding far differently from what his Aunt Reed believes.
Peer Pressure In Langston Hughes's 'Salvation'
1086 Words | 5 PagesHughes tells the reader he began to feel ashamed as he was the last child left. Hughes begins to examine the situation as it is unfolding. It is known to him that Westley lied about seeing Jesus because he was tired of sitting there. Hughes wondered after that why God himself has “not struck Westley dead” for lying. After examining all these events that occurred during the revival, he realises he will not see anything and should lie as well.
Langston Hughes I Too Analysis
858 Words | 4 PagesIn the poem “I, Too”, the author Langston Hughes illustrates the key aspect of racial discrimination faces against the African Americans to further appeals the people to challenge white supremacy. He conveys the idea that black Americans are as important in the society. Frist, Hughes utilizes the shift of tones to indicate the thrive of African American power. In the first stanza, the speaker shows the sense of nation pride through the use of patriotic tone. The first line of the poem, “I, too, sing America” states the speaker’s state of mind.
A Critical Analysis Of Salvation By Langston Hughes
757 Words | 4 PagesThat’s the beautiful thing about irony. You expect one thing to happen and then the complete opposite ends up taking place instead. Hughes went into church that day with the expectation that he was going to see Jesus because that’s what everybody told him was going to happen. Instead, he left disappointed, guilty and even disbelieving in Jesus all together.
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