Langston Hughes Langston Hughes Poet, novelist, journalist, playwright, essayist, and songwriter: all of these words describe a man who is said to be one of the twentieth century’s most respected and often controversial writers. This man’s main mission was to help enlighten people on the racial issues that were before them (Berry 5). At that time, this man was only the second blac

Langston Hughes Langston Hughes and Bob Dylan Langston Hughes and Bob Dylan are two poets from different eras in modern American poetry. Although Bob Dylan is more characterized as a songwriter, I see much of his work as poetry. In this essay, I will discuss Hughes’ poem “Harlem [1]” and Dylan’s “Times They Are A-Changin”’ as commentaries on are culture, but from different backgro

Langston Hughes Imagery Langston Hughes was a poet that lived from 1902-1967. He was a very distinguished poet of the Harlem Renaissance, the great out pouring of African-American art. The poetry of Langston Hughes is very different, yet it held the reader's attention. As a poet, he defines his role as a poet. Hughes has a very unconventional style, and language, though he gives his inte

Langston Hughes& The Harlem Renaissance The Harlem Renaissance brought many great changes. It was time for the African American people to express their culture. Many famous people began their writing and gained recognition during that time. The Harlem Renaissance took place during the 1920’s and 1930’s. During that time many African Americans started showing their different talents. Musi

Lapis Lazuli Tragedy and Art William Butler Yeats The theme of “Lapis Lazuli” is that all forms of art can surpass the tragedies experienced within the world; therefore making it gay. Yeats uses his theme of tragic joy throughout the poem, and often in his works toward the last few years of his life. As an artist of literature Yeats understands he faces death like every mortal, bu

Latin Women Pray Vs. Journey Of The Magi “The Grumbling Believers” Religion is a very controversial issue in every race, time, and generation. Whether someone “believes” or not is always an issue in everyday life for many people. In “Latin Women Pray” by Judith Ortiz Cofer, the writer is looking upon religious customs as a type of joke. Similarly in T.S. Eliot’s “The Journey of the M

Leda And The Swan William Butler Yeats’ poem “Leda and the Swan” is an awkward recreation of the Greek myth in which Zeus takes the form of a swan in order to seduce Leda. In this poem William Butler Yeats, known as one of the greatest twentieth century poets of Europe chose to use the sonnet format to retell this story. Yeats was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1965. He died at age 73.

Live Life Live, Living Life At first glance, Emily Dickinson’s poem #470 seems to be written by a depressed and apathetic person. However, upon further examination, it is clear she is not depressed or apathetic. She is, in fact, enlightened and concerned. Emily Dickinson detests “accepted society.” She believes it is a void, which one cannot easily escape from, and she feels the n

Let America Be America Again The Minority Perspective on America In the poem "Let America Be America Again," Langston Hughes shows the depressed state America was in during the 1930's. To many in America at this time, the American Dream had escaped their grasp and hopelessness had filled this void. In this poetic expression, the speaker is voices the silent Americans' concern of how Ame

Life Without Struggle Is Just A Fantasy Life Without Struggle is Just a Fantasy In the world people of every race, color, and culture all share something in common without even knowing it, that is they all have struggles in the way they live their lives. Other people in the world though usually cannot see most of these struggles. Yet, we all know that everyone experiences them. Thes

Lillian Hellman Lillian Hellman Lillian Hellman was born in 1906 and was the only child of a shoe merchant and a woman from Alabama. Her father’s job required her to spend half of the year in New York and the other half in New Orleans. These two different locations gave her a taste of two different worlds throughout her childhood. These two worlds are very often merged in her pl

William Wordsworth William Wordsworth is commonly regarded as the vanguard poet of the Romantic movement in British literature. The son of a wealthy Cumberland attorney, his birth followed the dawn of the English Industrial Revolution. Afforded an education not uncommon of the British bourgeoisie, Wordsworth attended St. John’s College, Cambridge, studying literature and rhetoric, prior

Literary Techniques In “We Real Cool“ Literary Techniques in “We Real Cool” Gwendolyn Brooks uses literary techniques such as dialect, ironic point of view, and syntax to accentuate the theme and persona in “We Real Cool.” The speaker, or persona, in “We Real Cool” has a black dialect. This dialect is used to characterize the group of pool players at the Golden Shovel. In the phras

London Poetry Assignment In William Blake’s poem "London", the speaker conveys London as corrupt and corrupting . The speaker presents his image of London through his many "wander[ings]" through its streets. He notes the despair of "every" Londoner and their oppression by the "church" and the state. In everyone the speaker passes he sees signs of misery and moral weakness. In fact, t

My Papa’s Waltz “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke is a poem overstuffed with many mixed interpretations. Some (other students) say the poem is about a man looking back on happy times. Some (other students) people even say the poem is a story about a little girl dancing with her father. Although there are many different ways to interpret “My Papa’s Waltz”, there are various line

Love Love “Sonnet 116” written by William Shakesphere deals with the idea of love. It questions true love and how we often mistreat those we love. Furthermore, the many things we do for those we love are shown. This poem shows how many times we misinterpret love. It shows that love does not alter or change, no matter what someone does, or no matter how it is tested. People that

Christmas All people in their lives went through the celebration of the Christmas. And today I want to talk about a poem that was written by Jean Reidy "Christmas". Just from the poem's name we can get the information, that the poem itself will talk about the Christmas. This poem contains many poetic devices, but I will talk about just three of them. They are personification, repetition

Marines MY Son, The Marine A thousand times I've asked myself if I have really done, all that I could for you, my bright and shining son. My heart cries out for you now that you have gone, and though I know you will return, the question lingers on. A kiss, a hug, is all it would take, to turn my heart around, though you are far away from me, the strings are tightly bound. Th

Aenied Paper Dido and Turnus both hold significant roles in the Aeneid with their opposing relations of love and hate to Aeneas in his mission. They are the two most important characters that stand in the way of the founding of Rome. Their existences both exenterate and hinder Aeneas personally as well as in terms of him seeking his destiny. Their deaths are necessary to bring closure in

Marvell Coy Mistress At first glance, Andrew Marvel's poem "To His Coy Mistress" is a fairly typical carpe diem poem, in which the speaker tells his beloved that they should "seize the day" and have sex now instead of waiting until they are married.. Marvell, however, isn't suggesting that unbridled lust is preferable to moral or ethical restraint; sex is the subject matter, not the them

Maya Angelou Maya Angelou is a very triumphant woman. She has written many books and poems that have given her great success. If one would talk to her, he or she would think she has lead a normal, happy life. Her life is blissful now, but it wasn’t always perfect. Maya Angelou’s sorrowful life experiences inspired her to write autobiographical works of poetry.

Mending Wall In “Mending Wall”, Robert Frost made us aware that something doesn’t love the wall in the beginning of the poem, the wall that symbolizes boundary and obstacle between people. Although this restrictive wall gives protection and a feeling of safety for the people who are inside it, it also creates a huge barrier to the people who are on the outside. The only difference betw

Merwin The Language of Nature W.S. Merwin’s poems are of great lyrical intensity, concerned with darkness and light, the seasons, and the passing of time across landscapes. His lyrics capture the spiritual heartbreak of our time. He illustrates the bittersweet joys of vanishing wilderness in Native Trees, anger at our political wrong-doings in Term, and the emotions that memory can g

Paradise Lost To make sense of the first two books of the epic poem Paradise Lost and further to understand Satan as a character, the reader must be equipped with a little background information. First of all, Satan, known as Lucifer, and his compatriots were once angels of heaven, with Satan himself being number two behind only God, the trinity (in other words God, Jesus, and the Holy S

Moma Death of an Innocent I went to a party mom, I remembered what you said. You told me not to drink, Mom, so I drank soda instead. I really felt proud inside, Mom, the way you said I would. I didn’t drink and drive, Mom, even though the others said I should. I know I did the right thing, Mom, I know you were always right. Now the party is finally

Poem for my Sister POEM FOR MY SISTER by Liz Lochead A poem I have recently read is called ‘poem for my sister’, which was written by Liz Lochead. This essay is going to investigate how Liz Lochead feels as an older sister towards her little sister, what techniques she uses to get what effects, what the sister’s relationship is like and how effective the poet has been. The poem is ma

Mr. Z Creating Situational Irony in Poetry Poetry often tells a brief story which encapsulates the entire life of a character in a few verse paragraphs. A skilled poet can generate an infinite variety of emotional responses from the reader, depending upon whether he or she intends the general tone of the work to be happy, sad, comedic, or ironic. In particular, situational irony can

My Arkansas "My Arkansas" by Maya Angelou, discusses her remembrance of an old Arkansas where she had spent some time as a child with her grandmother, in a rural segregated part of the state. An Arkansas where discrimination against blacks was an every day occurrence, and to this day, still has strong racial discrimination. The speaker, who is also the writer, talks of past crimes

My Last Duchess My Last Duchess, Robert Browning This poem is about a Duke talking about his ex-wife and what he wants out of his new wife. The poem opens up with the Duke and another character later recognized as the count showing a painting of his ex-wife on the wall, “That’s my last Duchess on the wall”. He’s boasting the quality of the painting “looking as if she were alive”. Inv

My Last Duchess In “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning, we are introduced to the dramatic monologue. In a dramatic monologue, the speaker unknowingly reveals his personality through his speech. In this poem, the audience listens to a conversation between the Duke and a nameless envoy who are making the final arrangements for the Duke’s second wedding. Strangely, the Duke brings out a