James Mercer Langston Hughes, an African American, was a renowned poet, novelist, journalist, and playwright who gained recognition during the Harlem Renaissance for his ability to convey the experiences of Black Americans through his works. He was considered one of the most innovative and versatile black writers of the 20th century, with influences from Paul Laurence Dunbar, Carl Sandburg, and his grandmother, Carrie Mercer Langston Hughes. Langston Hughes began his creative writing journey as a young boy while living in Joplin Missouri with his parents before they separated (Barksdale 14).
Growing up in Lawrence, Kansas, Hughes was raised by his grandmother Mary Langston due to his father’s immigration to Mexico and his mother’s frequent absence. His grandmother instilled in Hughes a strong sense of dedication, as her second husband was a passionate abolitionist and she exposed Hughes to the cause of social justice through stories about Frederick Douglas and Sojourner Truth, as well as taking him to hear Booker T. Washington speak. However, despite these positive influences, Hughes felt neglected by his parents and couldn’t understand why he couldn’t live with either of them. This rejection fueled his insecurity and lack of self-assurance. To combat the loneliness he experienced during his lonely childhood, Hughes sought solace in reading various books.
Langston Hughes’s true passion was found in books, which provided solace and a world where suffering was expressed with beautiful language. This contrasted greatly with his own monosyllabic experiences growing up in Kansas. During high school, Hughes began his writing journey and even at a young age developed the distinctive voice that would later make him renowned. His talent was acknowledged by both his high school teacher and classmates, resulting in the publication of his first poetry in the sophisticated school magazine called the Central High Monthly. It was an English teacher who introduced Hughes to influential poets like Carl Sandburg and Walt Whitman, who played a vital role in shaping his early writing style.
Langston Hughes enrolled at Columbia University in 1921 but dropped out after a disappointing year. He was captivated and inspired by the people and the vibrant atmosphere of Harlem. His autobiography, The Big Sea, offers a vital personal perspective on the Harlem Renaissance, providing much of our understanding of the era from Hughes’ viewpoint. One of his early poems influenced by Harlem’s culture, written while he resided in the neighborhood attending Columbia University, was titled The Weary Blues. Hughes described it as a tribute to a piano player he encountered in Harlem.
In New York, Langston Hughes wrote poetry and entered it into contests. He was invited to a banquet where he became acquainted with Van Vechten. Langston submitted some poems to Van Vechten, which were then published and appeared in the book The Weary Blues. For his poetry and essays, Langston received numerous prizes. He also attended various parties and banquets where he had the opportunity to meet famous and wealthy painters such as Miguel Covarrubias, Aaron Douglas, Winold Reiss, and Arthur Spingarn. Langston Hughes met his sister-in-law Amy Spingarn, who became his secret benefactor. She financially supported his education at Lincoln University, an all-male black college in Pennsylvania. During his time at Lincoln University, Hughes wrote many poems.
The book Fine Clothes to the Jew was published in February 1927 and received mixed reactions from critics. While some critics objected to it, J. A. Rogers expressed his dissatisfaction by stating that it is, overall, a collection of insignificant content comparable to what can be found in any book. If The Weary Blues made intellectual readers weary, this book will make them extremely ill (Mullen 47). Despite its experimental nature, Fine Clothes to the Jew was not well received upon publication, but many other critics considered it to be among Langston Hughes’s best work.
According to DuBose Heyward from New York Herald Tribune Books, the book Fine Clothes to the Jew is renowned for its consistent quality (Mullen 47). Despite having various jobs like being a deliveryman, messmate on ships, busboy, and dishwasher, Hughes was able to regularly publish his poetry in magazines such as The Crisis (NAACP) and Opportunity (National Urban League). As a poet, Hughes was the first to combine traditional poetry with black artistic forms like blues and jazz. As a prominent figure in the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and 1930s, Hughes gained fame as the movement’s leading poet. He published two poetry collections called The Weary Blues (1926) and Fine Clothes to the Jew (1927).
Due to his depression, Hughes became a supporter of socialism in the 1930s. Despite not joining the Communist party, he wrote many radical poems and essays for publications like New Masses and International Literature. He also spent a year in the Soviet Union (Barksdale 250). However, by 1939, Hughes withdrew from politics. During the war, he showed his support for the Allies through patriotic songs and sketches and published a poetry collection called Shakespeare in Harlem (1942).
He fought against segregation, particularly in his column for the black weekly Chicago Defender, where he introduced Jesse B. Simple, a comic but sharp African-American city dweller. In 1947, Hughes achieved significant success as a lyricist for the Broadway opera Street Scene, collaborating with Kurt Weill and Elmer Rice. Despite his accomplishments, Hughes still harbored concerns about the future of urban blacks. His perspective expanded to encompass a book of poetry, multiple children’s books, various opera libretti, four translated works from French and Spanish, two collections of stories, another novel, the history of the NAACP, and another autobiography titled I Wonder As I Wander.
Langston Hughes, living in Harlem, was caught up in the new rhythm of music as the great migration brought blues from the South to the North. He based many of his poems on this music, recalling hearing the blues performed in Kansas City during his childhood. Additionally, he continued his pioneering work in the theater, particularly in gospel musical plays.
Hughes was deeply interested in black music and tried his hand at writing lyrics. He was captivated by the potential of combining music and poetry. As someone who loved both this music and the black community that created it, Hughes also saw an opportunity to take advantage of the popularity of the blues craze. Despite the differences between the music and poetry markets, he believed he could find a way to merge the two. In his poetry, Hughes incorporated the structures, rhythms, themes, and words he encountered in the blues, whether in rural areas, cities, fields, alleys, or on stage. (Barksdale 46)
When Langston Hughes wrote his poetry, he often used the musical and stanza structures of the blues, particularly the twelve-bar blues structure. This form is commonly referred to as the classic blues, and approximately half of his blues poems adhere to this structure. Hughes himself stated that he attempted to write poems that resembled the songs he heard on Seventh Street. As a significant figure in the Harlem Renaissance, Hughes incorporated elements of blues and jazz into his work, thereby establishing a new tradition of literature influenced by Black music. One example of this can be found in his poem “The Weary Blues,” where he describes a weary blues man swaying lazily to the tune of an old gas light. Through this work, Hughes captures the divide between the narrator of the poem and the blues musician, highlighting the separation between the poet and his people.
Hughes, who did not have Southern roots or slave ancestors, often felt like an outsider when writing about slavery. Despite this, he was able to capture the essence of the blues through his poetry. In poems like The Weary Blues, Hughes goes beyond the absence of actual music and successfully embodies the spirit of blues songs through the rhythm of his lines. He also pushes the boundaries of oral tradition by altering or adapting existing structures and themes of the blues. Hughes’s extensive knowledge of the blues tradition and his ability to incorporate elements of oral blues into his work highlight his creative genius and recognition of the blues as a significant folk art (Emanuel 78). The poem “As I Grew Older” explores the theme of growing up.
The text explores the way childhood dreams can be hindered as a person grows up, focusing on the interference caused by the color of the dreamer’s skin. The use of brightness and darkness represents the obstacles that come between a dream and the dreamer, such as the wall mentioned in the poem. The wall symbolizes the problems that hinder someone from achieving their dreams. As the speaker starts to overcome these obstacles, they are met with rays of light.
The poem suggests that one should not let anything hinder their dreams (Jemie 34). One of Hughes’ most renowned and early poems is The Negro Speaks of Rivers, which serves as a virtual thirteen-line account of the history of African people. The rhythmic repetition of “I’ve known rivers” emphasizes the extensive life experiences that Hughes believed were inherent in every African-American soul. Lines five through eight encapsulate significant moments in African history, such as bathing in the Euphrates, building a hut near the Congo, and witnessing the Nile and pyramids (Hughes 10). Following these lines is a three-line gap symbolizing the absence in his people’s history caused by the impact of slavery.
The poem “Harlem Night Club” depicts the harmonious interaction between blacks and whites in Harlem, where they dance and sing together. However, with the arrival of tomorrow, their paths diverge and their true identities are revealed. It seems that the night serves as a mask, concealing their skin color. When the bright sun of the next day emerges, they retreat from each other, unable to hide their true selves (Hughes 67).
For many years, both blacks and whites have appreciated Langston Hughes’ poetry. He was not only the first to capture the rhythm of blues in words but also chronicled the experiences of being black in his era. Through his poetry, Hughes courageously confronted racism. Growing up in a society dominated by white power, black literary talents like Langston Hughes faced significant challenges.
Despite facing numerous obstacles in his life, Langston Hughes never gave up and was able to overcome them. As a poet, he was an extraordinary writer who found ways to express the forbidden emotions of African Americans through his simple poems and other literary works. Despite being written in a straightforward language, his works held a much deeper meaning that wasn’t apparent on the surface of their innocence.
Work Cited
Arnold Rampersad. Hughes, Langston. Hughes Life and Career. Oxford University Press. 1997
Barksdale, Richard. Langston Hughes: The Poet And His Critics. Chicago: American Library Association. 1951
Emanuel, A. James.Langston Hughes.Boston: G.K.Hall & Co.,1967
Hughes, Langston.The Big Sea: An Autobiography.New York: Thunders Mouth Press .1940
Jemie, Onwuchekwa.Langston Hughes : An Introduction To The Poetry.New York:Columbia University Press ,1976
Mullen,J.Edward.Critical Essays on Langston Huges.Boston.G.K.Hall & Co.,1986
Jackson, Blyden. A History of Afro-American Literature. Volume 1. Baton Rouge and London: Louisiana State University Press, 1989.
