7/30/2019 During the Harlem Renaissance Era Sydney Carroll

1/2

Carroll 1

Sydney Carroll

Mrs. Hampton

American Literature

October 10, 2012

Period 1

Life In Harlem

During the Harlem Renaissance era, many African Americans migrated to Harlem from

the South to explore new opportunities and to freely express themselves culturally. This

movement revealed the pain endured by African Americans through music and literature. In the

poem Harlem, Langston Hughes vividly describes his life by pointing out hardships within his

community. This poem indicates how African Americans couldnt prosper in life due to racism.

Langston Hughes hopes to create guilt and anger so that people can stand up for what is right

and speak out against the daily issues in their neighborhoods. Hughes utilizes general literary

devices of metaphors, personification and isolation to address racism, social injustices, and

poverty.

Langston Hughes uses metaphors in order to expose the realities about racism. In the

second stanza, Hughes writes because we are colored. Hughes reveals how African Americans

were treated due to the color of their skin. The word colored is being compared to a persons

appearance. This quote is definitely a metaphor because it is applying to ones physical

appearance even though the actual skin tone is not literally colored. Langston Hughes states

here on the edge of hell to express how difficult and messed up his life is that he compares to

hell. It is true that Langston Hughes grew up in the time where most black people didnt have

a voice, which made life dreadful but not to the point where hes literally living in hell.

7/30/2019 During the Harlem Renaissance Era Sydney Carroll

2/2

Carroll 1

Sydney Carroll

Mrs. Hampton

American Literature

October 10, 2012

Period 1

Life In Harlem

Langston Hughes uses personification throughout the poem to address the message of

social injustices. His use of personification is stated in the last stanza where he writes In the

face of what we remember.