Nicholas Hughes

Jimmy Carter delivered a speech on July 15th, 1979, that originally intended to focus on the serious energy crisis America faced at the time, but he instead surprised the nation by delivering a speech on the America’s crisis of confidence instead. In “The Crisis of Confidence Speech”, he addresses the country saying that the biggest problem the nation faces at the time is that it lacks the will and confidence of the people to do great things. At this time the nation was in the midsts of the Cold…

In the poem ‘Mother, any distance greater than a single span’, Simon Armitage has used symbolism to support the idea of a mother holding her child back and not wanting to let go. My first point will be his symbol of a tape measure as the years of the child growing older, followed an anchor as the mother and a kite as the child. This shows us that although things are changing, it is still important to keep a strong relationship so that you always have someone to support you. No matter how…

James Mercer Langston Hughes was born on the 1st of February, 1902 in Missouri. His parents got a divorce when he was young, and he was raised by his grandmother till the age of thirteen. He worked odd jobs such as assistant cook, launderer, and busboy. In 1930, he won the Harmon gold medal for literature. He wrote several novels, short stories, plays and poems, and he was well known for his interest in Jazz and how it influenced his writing. His life and works helped start the Harlem…

Enter. look at mirror and touch your face and pull your skin. I have been looking at myself in this small silver mirror, so much that I think it is a part of me. I sit in front of it in the powder room every day, gazing into a blank expression. I stare and see this woman, this woman who once held beauty and eyes full of mystery and secrets. But every single day it is fading, the beauty is fading, the eyes, which were once so full of emotion, are fading. I am becoming dull and lifeless, day by…

As a result of the multitudes of eye-opening written works describing the African American plight, modern day society has become more progressive and determined to fight for racial equality. By recounting the persecution of African Americans, the poem “Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar and Maya Angelou’s autobiography “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” contribute to the quest for equal rights. Moreover, these pieces of literature share a central idea as they both focus on the African American…

Harlem, New York City, is known for the renaissance movement of art and music that emerged during the early 20th century. The “New Negro Movement” embraced African American culture and pride in opposition to the institutionalized and popular racism that followed many black people from the south. Extremely high rents kept tenants in Harlem poor and in this atmosphere, the cycle of oppression and violence was nearly impossible to escape. In the novel The Street, author Ann Petry illuminates the…

The Breakfast Club (1985) directed by John Hughes, illustrates the contrasting personalities of teenagers Allison, Andrew, Brian, Claire and John, as they spend their Saturday morning in detention. From early on, each character is portrayed to belong to a certain clique within their high school. Through this, the film highlights the different labels put on each individual, their more or less hostile interactions, and what factors influence the nature of these interactions. From the beginning,…

Langston Hughes creates this poem by incorporating crucial details, words, and images to prove his point on the paradox he has created in the two worlds he identifies in his writing. Hughes reveals his inferior stature in the college he attends by stating he is the only “colored” male in his class. Not only that, Hughes takes time to explain that he returns home from the college by going “down into Harlem,” and traveling “up” to his room. The meticulous use of “down” and “up” emphasizes the…

Pache Vang INDIVIDUAL ORAL PRESENTATION For my Individual Oral Presentation, I will be exploring Harlem Sweeties, by Langston Hughes, and explain the writing techniques used in Harlem Sweeties, as well as his embrace of the bi-racial realities in Harlem, more specifically, black women of different shades. Then connect it to his view of his own race, which is shown in his poem, My People. I will then, compare the poem, My People, to Zora Neale Hurston’s essay, How It Feels To Be A Colored Me,…

The Chicano Civil Rights Movement was a movement that took off in the 1960’s which was also when the civil rights movement was in full motion through out the united states. With increased political activity from African American groups to produce much needed change as well as the implantation of the civil rights act of 1964 its easy to see why the Chicano Movement flourished. The 1960’s was a time of political activism which helped move forward the goals of not only African Americans and Mexican…