¶ … Sing America Metaphors
The Use of Metaphor in I, Too, Sing America
In the poem I, Too, Sing America written by Langston Hughes, the author takes the reader on a journey through the experience of the discriminated African-Americans in the Jim Crow south of 1924. The poem is told in first person and shows the injustice of racism (Jones 176). The overall goal of the work is to illustrate that America is a rich tapestry of different people -- all equally valid. The "I, Too" of the title and repeated throughout the poem alludes to the feeling of exclusion that results for those who are alienated by a societies laws, policies and norms (Hughes 545). The poem is very effective because of its genuine emotions.
At the heart of the work is the personal experience of the African-American who, in that day, had to contend with the denial of many basic freedoms -- where to live, what types of occupations one could have, and where to eat or drink from a public water fountain (Kaesshaefer 24). During the time of segregation, Jim Crow laws were used to mandate the segregation of all public places and were supposed to create a "separate but equal" status for African-Americans. This was often not the case, as reflected in the inferior treatment and accommodations for African-Americans as opposed those for Caucasians.
The use of metaphor is very elegantly woven throughout the poem. It opens with a review of the "carols" of various American workers -- a diverse mix of melodies and tunes that are also a part of America's anthem (Hughes 545). The implied meaning is that America has a vivid and bright song - a sort of rejoicing...
Equality was coming about at the time of this poem, but America still had a long ways to go, yet Whitman seemed to be able to see how people could be equal and happy in their own ways. In all of this equality that Whitman was describing, one can see how men and women were still not on equal ground at the time of the poem. Whitman relates men to
Simile -- A common device in poetry is the use of comparisons, often comparing something unusual or uncommon with something that is more familiar to the reader or audience. One kind of comparison is the simile, which uses the words like or as and compares two things that are dissimilar in order to bring about a fresh view and new meaning. An example of a simile that does this is found
Gallaudet.edu/englishworks/literature/poetry.html). Other components which are very important in understanding poetry's power to express include "tone" (the poet's attitude toward the subject); "theme" (what statement is the poet making regarding the subject being embraced?); and "structure" (the format through which the poem is present). The Unknown Citizen: Wystan Hugh Auden, the author of the poem, was not at all an unknown citizen. He became a very well-known and highly respected poet, in fact.
Expression of Meaning in the Poems of Langston Hughes and Robert Frost Every poet writes to express a certain meaning, but the means of expressing that meaning can differ significantly. Two poets that show the differences that can occur are Langston Hughes and Robert Frost. These two poets are especially interesting to compare because they are opposites in regards to how they express their meaning. Langston Hughes provides straightforward descriptions of
Fern Hill (Dylan Thomas) The "Poetry Explications" handout from UNC states that a poetry explication is a "relatively short analysis which describes the possible meanings and relationship of the words, images, and other small units that make up a poem." The speaker in "Fern Hill" dramatically embraces memories from his childhood days at his uncle's farm, when the world was innocent; the second part brings out the speaker's loss of innocence and
Intolerance Restoration Intolerance vs. Prodigal Similarities Differences Cultural Identities - Skillfully Blending the Ethnic Background with the American Dream The distinctiveness of a group, culture or an individual is referred to as Cultural identity. In spite of inherent differences, there is plenty of overlap between identity politics and cultural identity. The new method tries to understand the identity of an individual with an anthology of identities based on gender, history, nationality, sex, religion, aesthetics and place.
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