Nicholas Hughes

Growing up, Jean Toomer moved from all white to all black neighborhoods and shifted around all white and all black segregated schools. This gave Toomer a unique view of the world, fueling his ideas on racial equality. Toomer utilized his poetry as a way to express his feeling of racial equality and, became one of the most influential writers of the harlem renaissance. Jean collaborated with great reformers such as Alaine Locke, W.E.B. duBois, Zora Neale Hurston, Wallace Thurman, Nella Larsen,…

Langston Mercer Hughes, poet, novelist, playwright, and columnist ( ), was born to James Hughes and Carrie Langston on February 1, 1902 in Joplin Missouri. Not long after the birth of Langston, James Hughes left his family and moved to Mexico. Carrie moved around a lot during his childhood, so Hughes was raised essentially by his maternal grandmother, Mary, in Lawrence, Kansas until she passed on when he was an adolescent. From then on, he lived with his mom. She kept moving, however, she…

Considered one of the most influential artist during the Harlem Renaissance, Lois Mailou Jones’ early introduction to her inspirations led a path to a promising career. The impact that African culture had on her inspired her to depict African-American subjects in her own artwork. However, in the process she faced many obstacles. Despite this, Jones continues to be viewed as the link between the greatest that is the Harlem Renaissance, and contemporary expression. Born in Boston, Massachusetts on…

the right to call himself a true citizen of America- a country that's all about equality and freedom. Langston Hughes was often known as the the prominent poet of the Harlem Renaissance, which was the period of cultural eruption. This event took place in New York City during the 1920s, giving rise to popular jazz, African-American art, literature, and poetry. As an African-American, Hughes refused to obtain the racism that was introduced in the United States, and emphasized by his active…

Throughout Langston Hughes’ poem, “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” the theme of roots is prominent and this theme gives rise to the ultimate meaning of the poem. The poem cites strong imagery related to veins, rivers, and the roots of trees and give the reader a sense of the importance of these objects. Furthermore, through Hughes’ use of language and images, he is able to create two meanings for the theme of roots. On one hand they refer to the deep roots like trees have as well as in the…

The Harlem Renaissance: Langston Hughes and Claude McKay The Harlem Renaissance exposed some of the most passionate, intellectual literature written. Langston Hughes poem “Harlem” and Claude McKay poem “If we must die” contributes to this Renaissance movement. These two authors approach to action are different but share a common theme; hope. They are very talented writers that gave a voice to their community and are prime examples of Harlem Renaissance authors. One author shows it by visualizing…

America in Reality “ Let America be America Again” by Langston Hughes is a poem which is similar to Walt Whitman’s “ I hear American Singing”, Whitman is confident about America’s democratic opportunity. However, Hughes is writing from a black man’s perception, thus less optimistic about what America has been or will be. Hughes’s has his poem organized with rhyme, tone, rhetorical questions, and more unified with repeated anaphora. Connotation is used in the poem which evokes the…

2. This piece of poetry by Langston Hughes is a beautiful conglomerate of irony and foreshadowing. In the poem he is essentially saying how the word freedom is such are really beautiful and easy to say all day every day; and even perfect in theory. However, the word liberty (which is freedom coming into fruition), saddens him. Hughes elaborates by saying that if you had experienced what he had, and knew what he knew, you would be sad too. This eludes to that he had experienced oppression,…

The Harlem Renaissance had a vast impact on many people that inspired and influenced many individuals during the 1920s through 30s and even now. Proving themselves as any other, African Americans felt undoubtedly assertive performing through many forms of art. Typically, they represented themselves through fashion, dance, writings and music to express their culture as a whole. Many African Americans created art to show assertion and confidence. Likewise, expression was seen in art, showing the…

known as the “New Negro Movement” was a time of intellectual, artistic and social outbreak that occurred in Harlem, New York during the 1920s. Many African-American authors, poets, musicians, and artist emerged. Recognized figures such as, Langston Hughes and Claude McKay wrote progressive literature. On the contrary, Jessie Fauset wrote literature focused on middle-class blacks, race relations, and the similarities between Blacks and Whites (Christian 9). Many female writers like, Zora Neale…