Critical Analysis of Langston Hughes `Theme for English B`

Carl Hill

English 1102-013

Assignment 4 .1

10 /28 /2007

Analysis of Hughes ' Theme for English B

In the United States , there exists a great variety of persons with different cultural backgrounds . As a result of this vast cultural hodgepodge , throughout its history the nation has suffered through numerous conflicts relating to race . Furthermore , throughout the world today and the history of the world , conflict between different cultures and ethnic groups has been abundant . Ironically , most scientists and anthropologists would agree that from a scientific perspective the idea

of race in the human species is invalid race is primarily a social construct . The international group of leading scientists and geneticists involved with undertaking the Human Genome Project , an international project that accomplished the mapping of the human genome all reached this very conclusion . However , despite these inherent similarities most people tend to stress the differences between the many ethnic groups . In the poem , Theme for English B , Langston Hughes points out the innate differences in people to demonstrate the idea that we are more alike than different and that one 's race doesn 't supersede one 's humanity

Langston Hughes was a black poet , and the s of racism and race were familiar to him (Gates Appiah 29 . In his poem Theme for English B ' Hughes is attempting to persuade the reader that race could not be the determining feature of the human character . The role of every poet is to share his inner thoughts and feelings with the reader . A lyric poem 's primary feature is articulating truth about the author of the poem . It seems rather tempting to connect the feelings expressed by Hughes in Theme for English B ' with his personal experiences (Gates Appiah 34 . It is evident that Hughes emphasizes the importance of human coherence despite the outer disparities (e .g . age , race , social status etc ) In this sense the implications of the poem are much deeper . Not only Hughes makes the aspect of human identity central in his work he complicates this idea to the extent , where the human identity is no longer autonomous but on the contrary is developed through the process of human interaction

We are more alike than we are different , and this statement is supported by the identity development Hughes displays in the interaction between the student and the instructor : I guess being colored doesn 't make me NOT like the same things other folks like who are other races (Hughes . In this statement , in the relationship and the conversation between the student and the instructor , the student views the urgent necessity to persuade not only the teacher , but also himself in his being similar to the instructor . In their literary criticism , Gates Appiah mostly related to the theme of being American (44 . Hughes uses this word to strengthen his persuasion although , it is only an indirect characteristic , and the issue of personal identity remains central with no relation to specific nationality

Sometimes perhaps you don 't want to be a...