This is an interesting selection for your literature. Langston Hughes certainly has a great deal to say on the american dream and, having read some of his works, he articulates the obstacles faced by many in a way that elaborates well on your ideas. With this poem, his choice of title has an interesting effect on the poem. Without the title, it seems to be a fairly simple poem that lacks a conclusion. With the title, the conclusion is revealed and, with it, the poem becomes a warning of the rising racial tensions in America. The obstacles faced by those at the bottom of american society serve as prime contributors to this rising tension. These obstacles will, inevitably, lead the deferred american dream to "explode." They isolate the many who struggle and the exact nature of how that many will react is uncertain, established by the various possibilities throughout the poem.
This is an interesting selection for your literature. Langston Hughes certainly has a great deal to say on the american dream and, having read some of his works, he articulates the obstacles faced by many in a way that elaborates well on your ideas. With this poem, his choice of title has an interesting effect on the poem. Without the title, it seems to be a fairly simple poem that lacks a conclusion. With the title, the conclusion is revealed and, with it, the poem becomes a warning of the rising racial tensions in America.
ReplyDeleteThe obstacles faced by those at the bottom of american society serve as prime contributors to this rising tension. These obstacles will, inevitably, lead the deferred american dream to "explode." They isolate the many who struggle and the exact nature of how that many will react is uncertain, established by the various possibilities throughout the poem.