Identity in Poetry

Paper Summary:

Both Langston Hughes and Andrea Thompson go through social plights due to their minority status and they release their feelings about it in free verse. People always need to belong to a group: Personal identity is not enough. Skin color is not just the biological, visual complexion but a reflection of social identification. This paper examines how Andrea Thompson is more critical of the majority's biases than Langston Hughes. Hughes is also critical of the majority's biases, but he has a more optimistic tone and he chooses to focus on his race's heritage. Hughes has an alternative group and cultural heritage to turn to when rejected by society, whereas Thompson's native Canadian heritage has been destroyed.

From the Paper:

"The poem, "Mother to Son," strengthens Hughes' optimistic feeling by defining the racial pride mentioned in "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" and "Epilogue [to The Weary Blues]." The mother, not the boy, in the poem symbolizes Hughes telling his fellow African Americans that the plight they have been experiencing will merely make them stronger. He explains that the numerous, steep stairs they climb to reach social equality are "... no crystal stair[s]," once they get to the top, they can reflect back on what they have accomplished and the "tacks," "splinters" that they have overcome (Hughes, "Mother" 3,4,20).""

More papers on Identity in Poetry:

• Poem Review # 128061 : "American Identity in Poetry"
• Comparison Essay # 23222 : "Racism and Self-Identity in the Poetry of Fred D'Aguiar,Tom Leonard and Grace Nichols"
• Analytical Essay # 6590 : "Constructing Gender Identity in the Poetry of Katherine Philips"

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