Derrick Smith
ENGL-420 VA
Assignment #1
Section I. Langston Hughes “Harlem”
Langston Hughes’ poem “Harlem” is one poem in a series focusing on a common
image, a dream deferred. Hughes’ Montage of a Dream Deferred, published in 1951, is
collection of poems that use the common metaphor of a “dream deferred” as a symbol for
the social state of African-Americans in Harlem and America. The main subject of
“Harlem” is this dream deferred. The dream which Hughes speaks of is a dream shared
by African-Americans at the time, a dream of achieving the same social significance and
social equality of the dominant white race. As the Harlem Renaissance progressed in the
late 1920’s, African-Americans began making their mark on American culture but did not
achieve a level of equality in the social conscience of America. Unfortunately, the dream
of equality was not achieved in the subsequent decades either “Harlem” is a commentary
on the state of this “dream” for equality in the early 1950’s.
Hughes uses the metaphor of a “dream deferred” as the main vehicle for thematic
commentary in the poem. Hughes is arguing in the poem that the vision of the dream will
disappear unless African-Americans in Harlem decide to take action. African-Americans
culture remained in a subservient position to that of the dominant white culture. Hughes
uses “Harlem” as a sort of call to action for African-Americans to achieve their dream of
equality. The poem’s final line asks if the “dream deferred” will explode? Hughes is
wondering whether or not African-Americans will hear his call and take action.
There is ample textual evidence to support the main idea and theme of the poem.
The initial question of “What happens to a dream deferred?” immediately implies that the
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“dream” has been pushed to the wayside. Something has gone wrong in the process of
achieving this “dream.” In “Harlem” Hughes portrays several images to the reader that
symbolize Hughes belief in African-Americans need for action. Hughes use of the “raisin
in the sun,” a festering sore, rotten meat, a crusted over sugary sweet all represent images
that are in an altered decaying state. The raisin in the sun used to be a grape, the simple
sore has now begun to fester, and the once perfect piece of meat has become rotten.
Hughes uses the idea of these images in their original state to directly comment and
symbolize the African-American dream of equality. Hughes does not want this dream of
equality to “wither up” like the raisin in the sun spoken of in the poem.
Section II. Video Questions
1.) expurgated book
2.) True
3.) True
4.) Sound of Sense
5.) False
6.) Art and Music
7.) tiny specific sufferings of dying
8.) A dream deferred
9.) False
10.) False
11.) Understood
12.) Repetition
13.) Radio broadcasts
14.) Whitman
15.) persona
Section III. Robert Frost’s “Birches”
1.)
1.) The author likes to think of bent birch trees being bent by young boys swing
on them instead of ice storms
2.) The ice forms on birch trees after a winter rain and forces them to bend
3.) The sun eventually causes the ice to melt and violently break off of the trees
4.) The birch trees are not able to unbend after the ice melts off of them
5.) The author likes to think of the trees as being bent by a boy playing by himself
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6.) The boy tries to bend all of his father’s tree one by one
7.) The boy bends the trees from continually bending them
8.) The boy learns to perfectly bend the trees by carefully climbing to the top
9.) The boy jumps and swings from the tree bending it to the ground
10.) The author was once a swinger from the birch tree branches
11.) The author wishes he could swing from branches again
12.) The author wishes to swing from branches to get away from the earth for a
while, and then come back
13.) Coming back to their ground is a relief to the author
14.) The author likes being able to come back and leave the ground as birch
swinger
2.) The author of the poem seems to display a sense of pessimism with the world. The
poem seems to state that there are harsh realities in life that would be nice to escape for a
while. The title “Birches” describes a means for the author to escape these harsh realities.
While observing the birch trees in a natural setting the author sees an opportunity to get
away from the world’s harshness. The theme of innocence is also integral to the author’s
escape. The author states that he likes to think of the birches being bent by a young boy.
Later in the poem the author divulges that he himself used to swing from the birches as a
young boy. The author seems to be saying that young boys are better able to escape the
stresses and harsh realities of the world because of their innocence.
However, as the poem progresses Frost begins top point towards the redeeming
qualities in the reality of life. Frost talks of how he enjoys escaping life momentarily but
how he is also enjoys coming back to the world.
3.) Frost uses a number of words and phrases to relate to the theme of the value of
escaping the reality of the world. Frost uses highly connotative words such as “cracks”
“crazes”, and “withered” to connote the effect of the harsh realities of the world.
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4.) A number of comparisons are used by Frost to further illustrates the poem’s themes.
The first image comparison seen by the reader is between the bent over birch trees and
the other trees in the forest. The image immediately tells the reader that the birch trees are
different in some way from the other trees. Frost also uses the contrast between the sun
and ice to set up commentary on theme. The “ice” that blankets the trees symbolize the
harshness of life that Frost is trying to escape. The ice covers the birch trees, but the
warmth of the sun melts the ice off the trees. The sun possesses a sort of divine quality
that is able to release the trees from the coldness of the ice. Frost furthers the divine
quality of the sun later in the poem with references to the sky and heaven. A tension of
opposites is used by Frost later in the poem in describing as he describes how “your face
burns and tickles with cobwebs.” The burning and tickling symbolizes how life can be
tortuous and enjoyable at the same time.
One of the most symbolic contrasts in the poem occurs in the final two lines. Frost
writes, “That would be good both going and coming back” (ll. 58). The line encompasses
two of Frost’s main feelings in the poem. The going and coming back spoken of in the
line is in reference to Frost describing how he would like to return to Earth, “the right
place for love.” The tension between “going” and “coming back” shows Frost’s pleasure
in leaving the world, but also his pleasure in returning.
5.) Frost uses several words in a unique manner in the poem. The most notable word
usage is with the word “crazes.” Frost writes that that breeze among the trees “cracks and
crazes” the ice off of the birch trees’ branches. Frost uniquely uses to word “crazes” to
symbolize the confining ability of the ice. Using the ice as a symbol for the harsh realities
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of the world, the reader sees the birch trees becoming “crazed” by their exposure to the
ice. The birch trees are in a “craze” to break out of their confined state. Frost also
tactfully uses the word “considerations” later in the poem. “And so I dream of going back
to be/ It’s when I’m weary of considerations” (ll. 43). In the lines Frost describes of when
he thinks of returning to his time as a boy when he was a “birch swinger”. The word
“considerations” can have a duel meaning. At first glance “considerations” connotes the
many considerations faced by Frost in his life. These many “considerations” are what
cause Frost to wish that he could escape to the top of a birch tree to swing towards
heaven. If the reader deducts this meaning of consideration they see Frost as holding a
low regard for the reality of life. However, Frost’s use of “considerations” could be high
regards for the nuances of life. The line could also be construed to show Frost’s high
“consideration” or esteem for life. The duality of “considerations” in the poem depict
Frost’s feeling that life’s reality need to be escaped, but at the same time, it is important
or people to return to those realities.
6.) Frost evokes an array of sensory images in the poem to add to its meaning. Frost
makes the reader see, feel, and hear in the poem. In lines 7-9 Frost is able to evoke three
sensory images. “…They click upon themselves/ As the breeze rises, and turn manycolored/ As the stir cracks and crazes their enamel” (ll.7-9). Frost makes the reader feel
the breeze through the trees, see the changing colors, and hear the cracking of ice. One of
Frost’s other notable uses of sensory imagery comes in lines 45-47. “Where your face
burns, and tickle with the cobwebs/ Broken across it, and one eye is weeping/ From a
twig’s having lashed across it open.” Here the words “burns”, “tickles,” and “lashed” all
create sensory images in the mind of the reader. The words are all symbolic of Frost’s
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opposing views of the realities of life. The lines talk of Frost walking through the forest
and feeling an array of things. The difference between the meaning of words like burns
and tickles illustrate Frost’s pleasure and pain with the world.
7-8.) Elements of song and structure also contribute to the reader’s understanding of the
poem. Frost’s traditional use of iambic lines through the poem help illustrate the tension
of opposites in the poem. Frost uses several instances of alliteration through out the
poem. However, perhaps the most interesting aspect of sound and structure used by Frost
in poem is seen in how the poem physically looks on the page. Frost uses varying length
of lines that make the lines appear like a “forest” on the page. When the poem is looked
at with the page turned the lines are not readable, but the lines do reflects the pattern of
varying sizes of trees.
Section IV.
Robert Frost
Three Defining Characteristics
1.) Use of dark nature imagery
2.) Sound of Sense
3.) Conversational Lines
The poetic techniques of Robert Frost allowed him to carve out his own niche as
one of America’s most beloved poets. The above passage possesses several
characteristics that make the passage identifiable as a piece of Frost’s poetry. The first
characteristic is clear to the reader in the passages’ first line. “Some say the world will
end in fire.” The first line of the passages conveys Frost’s unsentimental about nature and
his view of nature as being cruel. The line shows the natural phenomena of fire
destroying the largest symbol of the nature, the world. The poem later speaks of ice
destroying the world, another natural occurrence. The tension of opposites between the
natural images of fire and ice in the passage symbolize Frost’s feelings of death in nature.
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This theme was prevalent throughout many of Frost’s poems. These natural images were
fueled by Frost spending a large part of his life on a farm, and also by the death of his
wife and two of his children. One of Frost’s most well known techniques was the
development of the “sound of sense.” Frost’s “sound of sense” attempted to elevate the
understanding of words beyond that of their simple meaning. The way words are spoken,
the way words appear on the page, and the way words sound can all meaning to the
words and the overall poem. The passage is a good example of Frost’s sound of sense.
The longer lines in the passage connote the conviction with which those lines are spoken
in the poem. The beginning longer lines deal with the “rage” of fire, while the shorter
lines connote the coldness of ice. Another distinguishable element in the poem is Frost’s
conversational diction. The lines and word choice in the poem are easily accessible and
readable causing to poem to read like a conversation.
Langston Hughes
Three Defining Characteristics
1.) Use of black language and dialect
2.) Variation of Blues Style
3.) Use of black experience and theme
Several elements of the passage make unmistakably the writing of Langston
Hughes. The first most obvious element is Hughes use of black language and dialect.
“I’m goin’ to the po’ house” makes the line come alive of the reader. The reader is able to
here the words spoken in a black dialect. The distinct pronunciation of “goin” and “po’”
transform the line from a simple sentence to a first hand look into the live voice and lives
of African-Americans. Hughes purposely used black language in his poems to create this
effect for the reader. Another distinct element in the passage is Hughes’ use of blues
style. This passage is an example of Hughes variation of traditional blues style. Where
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traditional blues style is a three line sequence with repetition seen in the first and second
line, Hughes often times created a six line stanza by breaking the three lines in half and
producing repetition in the first and third and second and fourth lines. In this passage we
see six short lines that seem to be broken from three longer blues lines. There is repetition
in the action of the first and third line in “goin’ to the po’ house” and also in the second
and fourth lines. The final defining element in the passage is Hughes uses of black theme
and experience. While the use of black language and dialect allows distinguish the
speaker as black, the use of black theme and experience provide a snap shot of black life.
In the passage Hughes speaks of going to the “po’ house”. The “po’ house” is symbolic
of the black experience as being socially inferior. As society continued to oppress blacks,
they were unable to attain the same social status as the dominated race and were
delegated to places like the “po’ house.” Overall, the combination of black language,
blues style, and black experience make the passage reflective of the poetic style and
techniques of Langston Hughes.
Walt Whitman
1.) Democracy Allusion
2.) Sexual imagery
3.) Unconventional Form
The passage illustrates three of the distinctive elements of Walt Whitman’s
poetry. The line “Yet utter the word Democratic” is symbolic of Whitman’s fixation with
addressing the idea of democracy in his poetry during the 19th century. Also, the second
stanza in the poem evokes images of the body and female and male sexuality. One of the
pervasive themes in Whitman’s poetry dealt with the beauty of the human body, both
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male and female. The second stanza initially brings up the “physiology” of the body.
Whitman states in the first two lines that that the physiology of people should be valued.
The final line of the stanza shows that he values both the female and male physical form.
Another of the defining characteristics in the passages deals with Whitman’s unique
poetic style. Whitman became known for the unconventional elements. The
unconventional form of Whitman is apparent by glancing at the poem. The passage has
three stanzas all of which have a different number of lines. Also, the lines are of varying
lengths. Finally, the is not an explicit rhyme scheme in the poem. The word “sing” is
repeated several times in the poem, but it does not fit into a rhyme scheme.
Ezra Pound
1.) The live tradition
2.) Promotion of nature and arts
3.) Musical
The passages displays Pound’s live tradition, focus on nature, and musical lines.
The live tradition is seen in the passage by Pounds use of archaic language in words such
as “usura” and “CONTRA NATURAM.” Part of the live tradition focused on keeping
alive the language and poetic techniques of writing from the past. Pound’s inclusion of
archaic language in the poem is reflective of his trying to keep the words of poets from
the past alive. The theme of the poem also makes it distinguishable as the work of
Pound. Pound had a deep desire to experience nature and the arts. He wanted to let the
rest of the world know that they needed to experience the arts. The passage discusses how
“usura” is killing some natural aspects of life. “Usura” is a reference to the archaic term
“usury” meaning the lending of money. Usury is keeping the bride and bridegroom from
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physical contact. “CONTRA NATURAM” is latin for “against nature.” Pound is saying
the poem that society’s fixation with money is taking it away from its natural state.
Another one of Pound’s techniques that is seen in the poem is his use of musical lines.
Pound’s use of words like “slayeth,” “stayeth,” and “lyteth” creates a music aspect to the
lines. The rhyming of the words adds a sort of song to the passage. Pound valued
including musical elements in his poetic lines.
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