James 1
Two Poem Analyses
Mothers are the backbone of the world. Many have heard the saying, “A woman’s work
is never done” and this very statement truly expresses the heavy load mothers bear in order for
their families and communities to prosper. Their strength, perseverance, and natural motherly
instincts are a few of the characteristics that make mothers exceptional beings. In the poems
“The Negro Mother” by Langston Hughes and “Woman Work” by Maya Angelou, present a
mother’s duties and concerns in two separate lights. No matter how different they may seem,
both of these poems display a small portion of a mothers many duties.
The Poem, “The Negro Mother” by Langston Hughes, showcases motherly duties and
concerns from a worldly dynamic. Mothers worldwide share relatively identical wants and
dreams for their families and communities. Some of the borderless motherly characteristics
Maya Angelou expresses in this poem are selflessness and perseverance. The following lines are
one example that represents both of these characteristics, “I had to keep on! No stopping for me -/ I was the seed of the coming Free.” There’s a sense of duty to exercise selflessness and carry
on for the sake of someone other than self.
Mothers aim to arm their children with the necessary knowledge and skills to achieve
greater heights than those before them, and knowledge of previous cultural lessons aids in those
efforts. I read this poem and it made me envision an older black woman, of grandmother or
great-grandmother status, giving a speech at an empowering African American gathering or at a
commencement ceremony for an all-African American school, in efforts to share the knowledge
of where the African race came from to better arm all dark skinned people where they need to
go. The last 17 lines deliver specific instructions on how to use the lessons of the older
generation’s struggles so that the younger generation may surpass those before it. For example:
James 2
All you dark children in the world out there,
Remember my sweat, my pain, my despair.
Remember my years, heavy with sorrow –
And make of those years a torch for tomorrow.
Make of my pass a road to the light
Out of the darkness, the ignorance, the night. (33-38)
This stanza identifies the target in the 1st line, and tells the target the information to focus on in
the 2nd and 3rd lines. In the 4th and 5th lines the author tells the target how to go about utilizing the
information, and in the 6th line tells the target where using this information will get them.
“The Negro Mother” also chronologically portraits the obstacles and/or perseverance
African women endured since they were stolen from Africa to present day, followed up by a few
words of guidance. Lines 1-8 tell of when Africans were taken from their homeland. “I am the
Black girl who crossed the red sea / Carrying in my body the seed of the free” (7-8). Lines 9-18
tell of slavery times. “I am the one who labored as a slave, / Beaten and mistreated for the work
that I gave” (11-12). Lines 19-30 tell of freedom. “Now, through my children, young and free, / I
realize the blessing deed to me” (19-20). Lines 31-50 are suggestive of the speaker summarizing
earlier points and sharing a few words of wisdom with younger generations. “Believe in the
right, let none push you back. / Remember the whip and the slaver’s track” (41-42).
It was only after several examinations of this poem that I realized this use of African history
chronology displayed worldly motherly concerns; such as how to ensure future generations learn
and utilize the lessons and downfalls of previous generations. This technique showcases how
mothers withstand and persevere through any obstacle to try and guarantee a way for those to
come.
The poem’s structure made it extremely easy to read and also very rhythmic. The rhyme
scheme “a,a,b,b,c,c,d,d, and so on” is utilized in the poem and creates rhythm in the words. This
James 3
rhyme scheme, along with imperfect and end rhyme, is what creates the fluidity when reading
the poem. The following stanza is an example of the rhyme scheme and styles used in this poem.
Three hundred years in the deepest South:
But God put a song and prayer in my mouth
God put a dream like steel in my soul.
Now, through my children, I’m reaching the goal. (15-18)
Langston Hughes also uses similes in this poem which creates vivid description that stick in the
readers mind. “Look at my face – dark as the night -- / Yet shining like the sun with love’s true
light.” Because the meter and style remain consistent throughout the entire poem, the rhythm of
the poem is accentuated.
The poem “Woman Work” by Maya Angelou showcases a mother’s duties and concerns
from a domestic dynamic. The choice of rhyme schemes and formatting clearly distinguishes the
two separate sections in the poem. Maya Angelou wrote the first half of the poem (Lines 1-14)
using one type of rhyme scheme (a,a,b,b,c,c, and so), along with perfect and end rhyme styles.
She wrote the second half of the poem (Lines 15-30) using a different type of rhyme scheme
(a,b,c,b,) in four four-line stanzas along with imperfect end rhyme.
The first half of the poem describes the chaos of domestic related motherly duties that
any mother can relate to. For example, “I got company to feed / The garden to weed / I’ve got
shirts to press / The tots to dress” (7-10). The second part of the poem is reminiscent of the calm
after the storm when mothers get a break. Each stanza contains words that infer a break time
such as, “cool my brow” (18), “rest again” (22), and “rest tonight” (26).
During the calm before the next storm, sometimes mothers ponder on the fact that after
all of the hard work, their children all leave to live their own lives leaving some mothers feeling
abandoned or as if there is a void to fill. The last stanza, lead me to believe the poet could relate
to this same feeling of abandonment after children mature and leave the home.
James 4
Sun, rain, curving sky
Mountain, oceans, leaf and stone
Star shine, moon glow
You’re all that I can call my own. (27-30)
Mothers often fill this void by caring for someone else or finding something else that can never
leave them. The nature references in this stanza, “snowflakes”, “rain”, “oceans” etc., make up all
she can call her own because they will always be there.
“The Negro Mother” and “Woman Work” represent a mother’s efforts to take care of and
provide for her family through two different interpretations of motherly duties and concerns.
Although these two poems present a similar theme from separate perspectives, collectively they
exemplify the strength and selflessness mothers possess which is necessary to persevere through
the many obstacles in life as they do.
James 5
Work Cited
Hughes, Langton. “The Negro Mother.” PoemHunter.Com.Ed. C. Ekrem. PoemHunter.Com, 1 Jan. 2004.
Web. 13 May 2012.