Langston Hughes

Most Powerful Poet of the 20th Century

Introduction

The Harlem Renaissance was a movement where black culture was celebrated instead of hid in the society where only white culture flourished. These times were considered major breakthroughs because still, there were people who thought society should not showcase African American music, poetry, literature, or their history. There were many influential figures during these times; Langston Hughes being arguably the greatest. His poem “The Weary Blues” undoubtedly had a powerful message that still carries meaning to this day.

About the Author

Hughes was born on February 1st, 1902 in Joplin, Missouri. Hughes had somewhat of a rough upbringing; his father left soon after he was born and his mother was rarely home because she was always looking for work or doing things on her own. It was described that his mother “never understood his desire to be a writer and was often absent from his life as she pursued her own interests” (Butler). As a child he was raised by his elderly grandmother who ended up dying when Hughes was just 13. Many historians believe this is why Hughes had such “fierce independence,” he channeled his hardships instead of letting them tear away at his mind.

One aspect of his life that certainly influenced his work, was the fact that he grew up in white neighborhoods, went to white schools, and felt like an outsider in the black community. Later in life Hughes began traveling all over the world and eventually published his poem “The Weary Blues.” While it may have been rumored that he was a communist, according to Masur, he was “sympathetic to radical causes, and his work across the decade displayed a socialist rhetoric common to the era. But he never joined the Communist Party, as many of his friends may have.” He died in 1967 at age 66 due to complications from prostate cancer.

About the Book

The poem was published in 1926. The main focus is on a pianist/ singer who is moved by the blues music. He places great emphasis on how the musician sways and feels the tune, almost with his soul. Langston Hughes had once said that blues were sung “to relieve the monotony of working, to express some thought on the mind, or — just for fun” (Rabas). Hughes used this poem to rise above the limitations of race, as almost everyone has used music or poetry to guide them through hard times and be a light in places that can be very dark. The purpose was to unify and he did an amazing job doing this with something that the masses can relate to.

One thing I found very interesting about the origin of this poem was that poets like Paul Laurence Dubar, Walt Whitman, and Carl, Sandburg influenced him tremendously. The poem was broken down even further in an article I found which states that the “theme is black people and their concerns; and for his ‘treatment’ (manner, style, technique, point of view), he adopts the technical resources of the culture: black idiom and dialect; black folk humor, including the tragicomic irony of the blues; the form and spirit of jazz” (Masur). This shows how he made people feel the way they did after reading the poem, and why this work was so influential.

Legacy

One article that truly showed the variety of audiences reached by Hughes was the text written by Luis Masur. It was shown that after the election of Donald Trump, one of Hughes’ poems became trending again. It seems as if history was repeating itself in such ways that society began to look at people who weren’t white and think lesser of them. Hughes was one of many that fought to eradicate this ideal, making people cling to his work in more present times. Noah Standish states that Hughes will never be forgotten because his work portrays such a powerful sense of “passion and cultural expression within black America — a reflection of an unwavering sense of pride that contrasted a historically abrasive society rooted in racial prejudice.” It is hard to forget a name like this, especially when “The Weary Blues” is what really started it all. It was something positive people could relation to but still call attention to issues in the country. Hughes was often called “the most prominent African American poet of the twentieth century” and that he was the true embodiment of the Harlem renaissance; this still holds true because his works of literature are far from dead.

Overall, through the blues Hughes worked to say what needed to be heard about the bigger picture issues of African Americans were facing during these times. Despite being written many years ago, the theme of his works still hold meaning today.