The Poetry Collection: Langston Hughes, an icon of the Harlem Renaissance

The Harlem Renaissance fostered a flourishing cultural, intellectual and artistic haven for African American people, including Langston Hughes. At the time of writing, Black consciousness within America was becoming increasingly prominent and publicised. Hughes wrote poetry that spoke to, for, and about the marginalised African American community. He was one of the few writers who crafted their work in order to dignify ordinary Black life, conveying the beauty of it. Hughes particularly focused on the dichotomy of the working-class Black experience in his literary works.

This scope of experience is what shaped Hughes to be one of the central figures of the Harlem Renaissance

Before settling in his writing career, Hughes cultivated a colourful life that influenced his poetic style. Before he was 12, he lived in six different American cities and during his adolescence he worked in various professions: a truck farmer, a cook, a waiter, a college graduate, a sailor, a doorman in Paris. He also extensively travelled, visiting Mexico, West Africa, the Azores, the Canary Islands, Holland, France, and Italy. This scope of experience is what shaped Hughes to be one of the central figures of the Harlem Renaissance. Hughes’ poetry was first recognised after he left high school through the publication of his poem, ‘The Negro Speaks of Rivers’. The poem was featured in The Crisis magazine and was revered as the first poem that celebrated Africa and dignified the image of Africa in American literature. In 1921, Hughes attended Columbia University in New York City where he first grew an attachment to Harlem. He quickly became very familiar with Harlem nightlife, spending hours in jazz and blues clubs that influenced him to sew the rhythms of music into his own literary work.

Soon after his discovery, his work began to turn towards themes of racial injustice and political radicalism

In 1925, Hughes’ artistry was officially discovered while he was working as a busboy. In the same year, he received the Witter Bynner Undergraduate Poetry Award and earned a scholarship at Lincoln University. Soon after his discovery, his work began to turn towards themes of racial injustice and political radicalism. He also began publishing other forms of literature including short stories and plays. His play Mullatto premiered on Broadway in 1935, depicting the tragedy of racial bigotry in America. In the 1950s, his most famous poetic works were featured in the collection Montage of a Dream Deferred that pinpointed themes central to African American history through allusions to The Great Migration and the emerging Civil Rights Movement.

In his poem ‘Let America Be America Again,’ Hughes addresses the invisibility of African American existence while crafting a biting critique of American Democracy.

“Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed—

Let it be that great strong land of love

Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme.”

(Hughes, l.6-8)

In leaving the ‘dream’ and ‘dreamers’ ambiguous, Hughes’ taunting of America develops through the implication that America, in all its grandeur, is uncertain of its own fantasies

Hughes’ repetitive use of the verb ‘Let,’ gives authority to the speaker, allowing them to become a mouthpiece for the African American population Hughes’ use of ‘dream’ imagery. By deeming the ‘dream’ the subject of the line rather than ‘America,’ Hughes is insinuating that America is defined by its concept of a dream, alluding to the illusory nature of American democracy. Through the repetitive notions of ‘dream[s],’ a ‘dreamer’ and ‘dream[s]’ being ‘dreamed,’ Hughes suggests that the idealism of American democracy will always remain a dream. In leaving the ‘dream’ and ‘dreamers’ ambiguous, Hughes’ taunting of America develops through the implication that America, in all its grandeur, is uncertain of its own fantasies. Lastly, dreams connote ideas of slumber, perhaps implying that as a nation, America has a lack of activity, and rather it conjures up slogans of false democracy shown through ‘dreams,’ ‘[strength]’ and ‘love.’

 “(America never was America to me)”

(Hughes, l.5)

“(It was never America to me.)”

(Hughes, l.10)

The parentheses demonstrate a general estrangement of African Americans from America. Removing the parentheses would leave the poem somewhat unaffected, regardless of the parenthesised text the poem would remain comprehendible. The easily dispensable internal thought of the speaker becomes a microcosm for the dispensableness of African Americans in America through Hughes’ poetic craftsmanship.

Langston Hughes became the first black American to earn his living from writing. Hughes remains relevant to the portrayal of the African American experience. His sentiments regarding American Democracy and the treatment of the Black population are still relevant today. In 1967, he died of cancer and his Harlem residence was given landmark status, still available to visit today.