Langston Hughes Essay

Langston Hughes is considered to be one of the most influential writer and poets of his time. His works and masterpieces greatly contributed to the advancement of the Black literature. His journey from a small-time boy into a knowledgeable man is very inspiring. He wrote poems and stories that apparently depict the culture and status of his race. Langston Hughes is a native of Missouri and had a humble beginning. From the start, his writing skills were already very visible but his father wanted him to become an engineer. He soon dropped out and decided to continue his love affair with poetry. Instead, his travels abroad served a great deal of inspiration for his work. When he came back, he moved to New York and became one of the movers in the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920’s. His travels opened his eyes for different culture in the world and at the same time, encompassing his roots. Harlem made a very deep impact on his writing style. Most of his poems are inspired by the blues and jazz era in Harlem that is why many of which is written in rhythmical language and is almost set into music. Furthermore, he also wrote plays and dramas that were staged in New York. His plays touched some taboo topics. But then again, he also founded the first ever Black theater groups in New York. Aside from being a playwright, he was also a contributor for Baltimore Afro-American. In 1929, he received his bachelor’s degree and continued to be a great writer and poet all throughout his generation (â€Å"Langston Hughes (1902-1967)†). Hughes is very influential not just in the African-American literature realm but also to the whole world. During the Harlem Renaissance, he was considered as one of its leading voices. Most of his works revolve around the great deal of discrimination and oppression that many African-American endured during the 1920’s. His poems and short stories mostly reflect the actual state of the society in their time. Through his poems, he was able to express his zealous viewpoints and sociopolitical protests. Most of the characters in his stories are based from a real person that he met while passing time in the many bars in Harlem. Through these characters, he was able to portray people who experiences racism and sexual conflicts. His environment was also a very gigantic influence on his stories, novels and poems. In his stories and essays, one will notice that he tell stories of violence in the south, the street life in Harlem, poverty, injustice, hopelessness and famine. Because of his poems, many politicians regarded him as a Communist but in 1953, he attested to the Senate that he was and never is a Communist. But, as the conscientious artist that he is, he kept his ordinary position and worked very hard to chronicle the experiences of an American black which normally is contrasting the splendor of the soul with the repressive conditions(â€Å"Langston Hughes (1902-1967)†). Hughes was not contented with just being regarded as a good writer. Besides that, what he really wanted was to capture the spirit of the ordinary man. With so much love and regard for his fellowmen and their culture, his specialty revolved around the daily way of life and situations of African Americans. All throughout his life, he exhausted every imaginable form of media just to convey his observations and interpretations into a fine piece of literature. In his lifetime, Langston Hughes was able to achieve no other Black literary figure of his time was able to do. He not only wrote stories and poems but for every literary piece that he finishes, it embodies the dreams, bliss, laughter, rage, sadness and pride that any human feels (Sylvester). One of his earliest essays was entitled â€Å"The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain†. In this essay, he tells about Black artists and poets â€Å"who would surrender racial pride in the name of a false integration. †(Jackson) He reiterated that Black poets and writers preferred to be called poets rather than putting a color adjective before the word. For almost forty years, Langston Hughes became a very prolific writer with over a hundred essays, poems, plays and books under his belt. Even after his last days, Hughes did not give up writing. Instead, he became a professor and lecturer. When he died of cancer in 1967, many people mourned. Even after his death, countless praises were bestowed upon his works and until now, it is considered to be one of the greatest forms of African-American literature in history. Even in another lifetime, Langston Hughes’ life and works is worth looking back. His life inspired countless people to fight for their rights and assert their places in the society. His essays, poems and stories became a medium in which many African-American were able to relate to because they were actually the subject. They saw themselves sin the characters that Hughes created. But more important than the technical contributions that he gave, he is praise-worthy for his courage to step up against the oppressor of their times. His works, particularly his poems depicts the struggles and emotions of the ordinary African-American in1920’s. Furthermore, he is instrumental in the Harlem Renaissance in New York. He became one of the leading purveyors of Harlem art in New York. And through the different forms of media, he was able to convey the message of his fellow African-Americans to the world. Because of his poems, the world became aware of the resistance of the Blacks in America. Additionally, his poems are very straight to the point and simple; but no matter how simple his poems may seem, it does not fall short on its messages. Truly, Langston Hughes deserves to be a part of the African-American culture not just in New York but all over the world not only for his great literary contributions but also as one of the voices in uplifting the image of African-Americans to the world. Reference http://www.redhotjazz.com/hughes.html