Essay Number One
Through the many hardships one might go through in life, living as a minority can be considered one of the hardest. Not being able to afford a better living, being pigeonholed simply based off of the color of one’s skin, or having to work tirelessly without relief are only a few examples of what an average minority might experience. Langston Hughes’ Mother to Son, Allison Joseph’s On Being Told I Don’t Speak Like a Black Person, and Philip Levine’s What Work Is all illustrate how coming from a multi-cultural background can prove to be difficult while living in America. By breaking down each poem and their meanings, the reader can learn and grow a deeper understanding of what it is like living in such conditions. These three …show more content…
In the poem, a mother gives life advice to her son from her perspective and experiences. The tone of this poem is moralistic, encouraging, and optimistic. She wants her son to keep striving for a better life and to not give up when conflicts arise. In the second line, the speaker modestly explains to her son, “life for me ain’t been no crystal stair”. By utilizing symbolism, the speaker metaphorically describes their life as a stair. The crystal stair represents a perfect life, which is far from what she went through. She continues to symbolically illustrate her life by describing her particular stair as “bare” (7) and having “tacks in it” (3). This represents how flawed her upbringing really was. Aside from her constant struggle throughout her life, she still manages to bring about a very optimistic feeling to the overall text. She basically lectures her son about the importance of persevering. There are no excuses left for him to give. If she can overcome these obstacles that so can he. Overall, she continues to motivates her son to never give up based on any failures in life. She encourages him to continue moving forward exactly like she did, despite all the …show more content…
His admiration was primarily aimed towards the many individuals who struggled against repression and ordinary people who worked dead-end jobs simply to avoid the harsh realities of poverty (The Poetry Foundation). In Philip Levine’s poem What Work Is, the speaker is standing in the rain waiting in line for a potential job opportunity. They express the difficulties placed upon the shoulders of the working class compared to the upper class. The speaker goes from explaining the literal aspect of work and the process of obtaining one to speaking about his brother. There is nothing that the speaker wishes more than to stay home with him. There is sort of a bitter tone starting in line three where the speaker states, “…if you’re old enough to read this you know what work is, although you may not do it. Forget you.” This particular passage talks down to anyone who does not have to endure the same responsibilities the speaker does. It is clear that they are very quick to dismiss anyone who cannot relate to the hardships of work. If one does not have to work for a living, then this poem is not for them. This particular poem uses the Reader-Response Theory by acknowledging the working class and their adversities. If the speaker was a part of the upper class he could be at home enjoying the company of his brother, who is
Through the many hardships one might go through in life, living as a minority can be considered one of the hardest. Not being able to afford a better living, being pigeonholed simply based off of the color of one’s skin, or having to work tirelessly without relief are only a few examples of what an average minority might experience. Langston Hughes’ Mother to Son, Allison Joseph’s On Being Told I Don’t Speak Like a Black Person, and Philip Levine’s What Work Is all illustrate how coming from a multi-cultural background can prove to be difficult while living in America. By breaking down each poem and their meanings, the reader can learn and grow a deeper understanding of what it is like living in such conditions. These three …show more content…
In the poem, a mother gives life advice to her son from her perspective and experiences. The tone of this poem is moralistic, encouraging, and optimistic. She wants her son to keep striving for a better life and to not give up when conflicts arise. In the second line, the speaker modestly explains to her son, “life for me ain’t been no crystal stair”. By utilizing symbolism, the speaker metaphorically describes their life as a stair. The crystal stair represents a perfect life, which is far from what she went through. She continues to symbolically illustrate her life by describing her particular stair as “bare” (7) and having “tacks in it” (3). This represents how flawed her upbringing really was. Aside from her constant struggle throughout her life, she still manages to bring about a very optimistic feeling to the overall text. She basically lectures her son about the importance of persevering. There are no excuses left for him to give. If she can overcome these obstacles that so can he. Overall, she continues to motivates her son to never give up based on any failures in life. She encourages him to continue moving forward exactly like she did, despite all the …show more content…
His admiration was primarily aimed towards the many individuals who struggled against repression and ordinary people who worked dead-end jobs simply to avoid the harsh realities of poverty (The Poetry Foundation). In Philip Levine’s poem What Work Is, the speaker is standing in the rain waiting in line for a potential job opportunity. They express the difficulties placed upon the shoulders of the working class compared to the upper class. The speaker goes from explaining the literal aspect of work and the process of obtaining one to speaking about his brother. There is nothing that the speaker wishes more than to stay home with him. There is sort of a bitter tone starting in line three where the speaker states, “…if you’re old enough to read this you know what work is, although you may not do it. Forget you.” This particular passage talks down to anyone who does not have to endure the same responsibilities the speaker does. It is clear that they are very quick to dismiss anyone who cannot relate to the hardships of work. If one does not have to work for a living, then this poem is not for them. This particular poem uses the Reader-Response Theory by acknowledging the working class and their adversities. If the speaker was a part of the upper class he could be at home enjoying the company of his brother, who is