Jim Crow Laws was the name of the racial categorization that affected many African Americans from the 1870s to the 1960s. Under this way of life, black were classified as second class citizens. Through this societal hierarchy, many African Americans faced hardship and prejudice. The laws influenced the nation so greatly that even scientists, doctors, and other professionals "proved" that blacks were inferior to the whites in intelligence, morality, and civilized behavior. These laws convinced people that mixed babies would destroy the nation.
“Let America Be America Again” by Langston Hughes is a powerful poem that points out all of the struggles minority groups and lower-class people go through. Hughes believes that the American system is corrupted and unfair. He thinks that the businessmen are greedy, taking from the poor and giving to the wealthy. The American idea is something that is not real for many people because of their race, economic situation, and come up.
“I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart, I am the Negro bearing slavery’s scars. I am the red man driven from the land, I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek.” In the poem “Let America Be America Again” by Langston Hughes, the reader here’s from two different speakers, and how they both seperately want America to change. One of the speakers wants America to go back to what it was before, while the other responds in small comments, building up to say the quote you read at the beginning. In the poem “Let America Be America Again” the author has two separate speakers with contradicting thoughts, the author relates to problems that were happening in the real world, and how the author’s rhyme scheme is a vital component to how this poem reads.
American Dreams The American Dream is a well-known topic, but the understandings of the concept are many. America has always been the land of opportunity, the country some people could only dream of. In his poem ‘Let America be America again’ Langston Hughes deals with the topic. In his poem he does not talk about what the American Dream is, more so what the American dream is not.
America is well known as the land of the free and the home opportunity. Although it is said everyone is equal in every way, that has not always been the case. Langston Hughes is a poet who tried to emphasize the idea of equality among all human beings. Hughes underlined the basis of the American Dream with what is and what should be in the societal era he lived in. In hindsight he believed his poems helped others realize the injustices that all minorities had to face during this era.
What is the American Dream? Many people have tried to explain the dream, or how they feel about the dream. Most try to be all patriotic and country loving like Walt Whitman... But others like Langston Hughes reveal a darker side of the dream.
As demonstrated in multiple scenarios, the excursion that is caused by the dream contributes to the part of the greater American story. Many Americans lack the resources and opportunities that others are naturally given, yet it is what the individual does in their specific circumstance that allows them to fulfill their own American Dream. The hardships and sacrifices that an individual goes through provides the motivation that has them continue to search for the self-gratification that stems from the American Dream. As demonstrated in Source D, the truths that we hold to be self-evident and those that provide us with Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness are shown through “a faith in simple dreams, an insistence on small miracles,” while “[participating] in the political process without fear of retribution,” (Source D). The small miracles and dreams that the people have, as well as the motivation and courage to seek out the dream embodies the entire concept that lays the foundation for the dream: hope.
Is the American Dream really available for everyone? In the poem “Let America be American Again”, Langston Hughes tries to get the point across that the American Dream isn’t open for everyone. He describes the hopeful immigrants who seek America for a new start but arrive to find only that America “The Land of the Free” is full of mighty people who dominate the weak. Hughes depicts the downtrodden Negroes who bear who bear many scars, physically and mentally, of the seeming to have no end slavery. Even in present day America, black people still do not have all the equality rights they deserve and long for.
In “I hear America singing” by Langston Hughes we see the American dream depicted as the American Dream for Blacks in a time of segregation and
Many people around the world come to America for a better life. America “land of the free” is known for its vast opportunities and equality for all individuals. Although if we look back in history, there was a time where living in America did not welcome opportunities or equality for all individuals. Many dealt with this hardship by protesting. One means of protesting was writing. Writers took their pens to paper and expressed words to combat the massive oppression, discrimination, and racism that was being faced by many. One such writer was Langston Hughes. He was an inspirational African American poet trying to become accepted during the segregation of the 1930s. During his life he wrote many poems expressing his views on America around him. In response to the segregation of many ethnicities, Hughes wrote “Let America Be America Again”. This poem reveals although immigrants and minorities seek opportunities and equality, they cannot achieve the dream unless they
Langston Hughes and America Langston Hughes, as renowned poet, a leader during the Harlem Renaissance, and a man of color, had written poetry during a particularly difficult time for people of color. Considered a founding father of Jazz Poetry, using various techniques, and styles of poetry to convey story in a rhythmic style. Many of Hughes’ poems focus heavily on America or the American dream. While reading “Let America be America again” it is evident that this poem is a description of the American Dream, “Let it be the dream it used to be. Let it be the pioneer on the plain Seeking a home where he himself is free.”
Historically countries, such as America, have muted and failed to addressed the social injustices against minority groups. Although America is considered to be the “melting pot,” it continues to face issues regarding freedom and justice for all of its citizens. Langston Hughes, who was a writer and social activist, wrote poetry during the Harlem Renaissance which addressed the social issues facing African Americans and minority groups. Allusion, anaphora, and rhyme scheme are employed by Hughes in his poem, “Let America Be America Again” in order to show how false America’s claims of equality and “Justice for all” are.
What would happen if the dreams you most desired were at risk of never coming true? In the poem, "A Dream Deferred" by Langston Hughes, he uses figurative language to convey the importance of what happens when a dream is deferred for too long due to oppression. Not only does Hughes uses similes to help the reader understand the author 's point of view, but also metaphors and imagery.
The second speaker also reshapes the first two lines of the entire poem into a plea to the majority. Beforehand, the first speaker uses those lines as a call for the old American spirit to be revived: “Let America be America again / Let it be the dream it used to be” (1-2). Both speakers change the meaning of the lines to express their thoughts on America. As a result, the poem expresses the desire for everyone to be treated equally in the land of freedom. The readers can relate to the speaker because they wish that everyone has equal rights in the country that proclaims itself to be the symbol of freedom.
The idea that hardships may bring out of someone something they did not know they had within them is something that many people believe. American culture is one that admires resolve in the face of hardship as we believe that is when someone shines that most. However adversity does not always bring out something that was not being shown before but rather gives a new direction to talents that someone already has. Adversity may push some to recognize talents they did not they had, like for example taking an advance class in a subject they did not like but finding they are talented in understanding the subject. While adversity may help people discover a talent or build their character, adversity just mostly puts their talents to use in a different way or showcases people’s character.