Every semester I would be informed that the poem "Negro" by Langston Hughes is one that exasperates many. They Googled, and they Googled, and they Googled. The end result is, they find loads of information on other "Negro" but not the Negro they have been assigned with.
I am ecstatic. For once you have to rely on your own interpretations without relying on what others have said. Switch on your creative and critical thinking knob and share with the rest of the community what you have discovered about Negro.
Negro as I know is referring to a person of black ancestry or appearance."The black" normally associated with slavery,segregation and discrimination that treated as a second class citizens. Clearly in this poem, it is written from the first person point of view, because the use of "I"(first person pronoun). The writer used parallelism as the actions of the different types of roles played by a Negro (slave,worker,singer,victim).It reveals the negro's lower social status in the America society through vivid imagery such as brushed the boots,made mortar,carried sorrow songs and they lynch me. It shows the irony between the works done by a negro and the allusion (Caesar and Washington). A lower status negro campare with the higher social status men. Indirectly, readers as well as me will felt sympathy about the negro's fade. They've no right to decide their future, just because they are born in black.
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ReplyDeleteHello Pn.Ju and my dear friends....
ReplyDeleteNegro is a poem which touched my heart the most. It resolves around the history of African-American, their hardships and how they were mistreated just for being 'black'. In another word, these situation they went through has got close relationship with racism. They were in a state of being a slave, a worker, a singer and even made a victim and were badly discriminated by other people around them. No matter what they’ve gone through, the poet still feel s proud of the achievements which followed this hardships, pain and sufferings.
The poet, Langston Hughes, being born an African-American himself is trying to emphasize on love and feeling proud on their tradition and heritage and how these black man refuses to carry these feelings in them nowadays.
This poem teaches us to appreciate our ancestors and the way we were brought up. They went through a lot for their future generations in order to secure a better life for them. It’s their pain and suffering that has brought us to an extent of being who we are now. No point being ashamed to admit who we are and that is quite important so that others know how strong we stand and have confidence to face any obstacles in life. It is always who we are and not what we do that determines what others think of us. No matter what job we do, the way we carry ourselves is more important as that reflects who we are from inside.
SUBASHINI A/P SHANMUGAM PJJ BPTESL4~(J40730)~
Tough the poem is written in a short and straightforward form, Langston Hughes has successfully arranged the words and put the feeling into it. The negative tone that he uses really helps the reader to get the real mood of the poem. He started the poem with
ReplyDelete“ I am a Negro:
Black as the night is black,
Black like the depths of my Africa.
and he repeated the same lines to close the poem. I believe that he purposely repeats the lines to stress that ‘Yes, I am a Negro’ in confident way and without any sense of inferiority. He was so proud telling everyone that he is one of his race even tough he realizes that his race is being put at the lowest level in the society. On the other hand, the repetitions of the lines also indicates that no matter what they do, no matter what they think, no matter how people treat them, years by years, generation by generation, nobody can change the fact that a Negro will still be a Negro. Nobody wants to be labeled or discriminated, by being born as A negro, they have to face the fact and ready to shoulder and endure the hardship and pain that his ancestors have been through. Their lives are determined by their skin colour, which for us, nowadays, will think it does not make sense at all. Negro is seen important and ‘qualified’ to work as labourers, slaves and other low class jobs but no one realizes and accept the fact that the people who are being looked down and despised, are the one who built the pyramids and Woolworth Building, which is considered as one of the most famous skyscrapers in New York City.
As I read through the poem, I do feel that though we are now in globalized era, the perception and discrimination towards other people is still remain and never changed. The only thing that changes is the fashion and trends, but not the mentality.
J40729 - Siti Nor Fazidah Tahir
Hi Pn. Ju and my dear friends,
ReplyDeleteYes Puan Ju managed to find a solution to my problem of posting the comment. Thank god and thanks for giving me other options if I had troubleshooting the problem.
Negro, only reminds me of my teen years where I would eagerly sit to watch 'ROOTS'. This programme portrayed the torture the black people went through in life being slaves to the white.
As such this poem brought memories of 'ROOTS'. It was written during the Harlem Renaissance in 1920's. This was a time when racial pride was represented through things like art, music and literature. This poem highly reflects upon how the black people were affected and challenged by racism. It reflects the history of African American and their trials and turbulence they endured in the past and continue to a much lesser extent in the present.
He talks about the different roles played by the negro’s and he represents himself and his race as having been a slave, worker, singer and victim who suffered discrimination in several different ways, places and from several different people.
As for me this poem touched my heart as I strongly believe that no man is a slave of another. We should look at each other as brothers and sisters and treat all with respect and integrity. Inspite of their varied experiences through life, sometimes in very sad roles and circumstances, the negro is still proud to call himself a Negro and hold his head high for having contributed something useful to society. The allusions used in this poem, alluding to Julius Ceaser, George Washington and the Woolworth Building show the large role played by the black people throughout history. That is the theme conveyed by Langston Hughes “ One should be proud to be who they are”.
Helo Pn Ju and all…
ReplyDeleteIn addition to what I have written of this poem…I would like to share my own experience about the issue highlighted in this poem on how some people out there refused to be proud of their background and what they were made of…
I have once encountered this one person who said that he doesn’t feel good when he is surrounded by Indians….gosh it happened a long time back but those words are still fresh in my memory. It feels as if he just uttered those words yesterday. He was then standing in a big group surrounded by non-Indians and only a very small number of Indians were around. Being an Indian who has so much of respect for my race…those words of his broke my heart into million pieces…I couldn’t find the broken pieces till today and that’s why I find it hard to forgive and forget….Maybe I won’t be able to forget this particular incident until the very last…Although after this statement was made, he did attempt to clear what he had said but too bad once it has been said it remains that way and it was never possible for him to pull his words back… He has his own reason for behaving like that he claims but I could never think of any motif of embarrassing his own people among others….What could the motif be anyway??? Perhaps he was trying to proof he is too good for his own race, which is far possible for him to achieve. On my opinion, making fun of our own race is like making fun of our parents…For me, if we can’t be proud of who we are, and talk bad about our own race among others, that’ll only lower our dignity coz other races will be able to judge how we are not considerate and understanding towards other people’s feelings..
That incident was a turning point of my life…
I learnt that besides giving respect to other races and their beliefs, we should also respect our own…Once we are able to appreciate who we are, we would be able to understand others easily and this is where being tolerant comes in….. Living in a multicultural country like Malaysia, this concept plays a very very important role….I m proud to say that I m an Indian and the same time it makes even more happier to say that I AM A MALAYSIAN :D
SUBASHINI A/P SHANMUGAM PJJ BPTESL4~ J40730 ~
Hi Suba, I strongly agreed with you. I believe that peace and harmony can be the pillars of strength for each individual, ethnic group and the country. This poem not only reveal the important of unity between different ethnicity but also foster us to contributes our effort to the development of our country, regardless to what ethnic you belong to, what language you speak and what skin colour you have.
ReplyDeleteGood morning dearest Pn.Ju and fellow bloggers,
ReplyDeleteI believe that the persona in this poem is Hughes himself. Hughes have always fought for the blacks through his writing and political views. Even though the stanzas in the poem are denotatively simple, I personally believe that each stanza carries a somehow uniquely different connotation. In the first stanza, Hughes exclaimed that he is black and he compared it with his ancestors from Africa. Hughes is actually from mixed parentage therefore his skin complexion is not as dark as the Africans but why did he compare himself with them? I believe that he felt that way particularly because he wants to highlight the fact that he is not ashamed to be born and ‘labelled’ as a black man. In an era when there is a discrimination against the Negro, Hughes proudly used the term ‘black is beautiful’ and this is clearly highlighted in this stanza.
The second stanza is where Hughes revealed his ancestors’ past turbulences. They were once forced into slavery where they had no right to live their life or even to speak. Here, Hughes used two prominent figures; Julius Caesar and President George Washington as examples that slavery can happen not only physically but also mentally and it can happen to anyone. Ironically, Caesar the great who had uncountable slaves under his fingertips was once kidnapped by pirates. Washington, another great figure was also ironically a slave for his own country during the war. He was forced to fight both for the freedom of the colonists while at the same time he had to fight to maintain the institution of slavery.
The third stanza shows that the Negro..despite being treated as slaves are the people who have worked and toiled their sweat and blood to build the pyramids and the Woolworth building. This is a bold statement which Hughes used to convince the Negro not to belittle their strength and capabilities. The next stanza carries another connotation. Hughes revealed that his ancestors were once ragtime singers. Ragtime was used back in those days for the black Americans to ease the burdens of their life through music. This stanza shows that Hughes strongly believed that the cries of his ancestors are heard through music and this music can be turned into a strong revolutionary gesture to inspire the youths.
The fourth stanza is used to portray how the Negro was treated inhumanely during the slavery period in Congo all the way to Mississippi. It serves as a reminder to the others that history can repeat itself just like the time when innocent Congolese were killed by Belgium’s king, Leopold II. Finally at the concluding stanza, Hughes repeated the first stanza again to remind not only the black Americans of his generation but also other races to stay proud of their own origins.
I personally believe that this poem is a bold statement with an agenda to educate not only a particular community but also the whole world that discrimination should never be tolerated. Discrimination can exist in any form and it starts from the way we judge others. How we view those around us can be corrupted when we are plagued by the view that we are superior and others’ views or justifications are not important, only ours. Therefore, to end my never ending view (Pn.Ju, I can honestly go on and on about this poem because it’s one of my favourite poems)…I’ll rest it in the words of none other but the revolutionary Dr. Martin Luther King “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
LEVINIA ANAK TONG KENG (BPTESL PJJ-J40722)
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ReplyDeleteHello, Puan Ju and my friends,
ReplyDeleteHi Suba, I also had watched Roots,the Saga of an American Family that tells the story of Kunta Kinte, an 18th-century African, captured as an adolescent and sold into slavery in the United States.
I still remembered how many times I cried (although at that time I am still young), when the Negroes being brutally treated by the Whites. I cannnot believe how cruel the Whites, separated the Negroes family, selling the father, mother and their children to the different families and beaten them up.
When I am reading this poem, it nearly made me cry. The way the poet describes himself being discriminated in so many places and by so many people, shows us how horribly he and others have been treated.
This poem is a flashback of the history of African Americans and the trials and tribulations they had in the past and continue to endure in the present.
Hughes describes himself and his race as having been a slave, worker, singer and victim who suffered discrimination in different ways from different people in different places.
I can feel the extreme suffering in his words as he describes the roles of a negro. Why should they being treated badly? Is it because they are black? To me, a good person comes from the heart not from the looks or the skin colour.
ROSILA ISMAIL (J40727) - SEM 4 - BPTESL
Good morning Pn. Ju and my frens….
ReplyDeleteIts all about being who we are, appreciating and respecting others to ensure a happy and peaceful life..the message of this poem is so clear and close to all of us..
Kak Rosila…
I seriously want to watch this movie you are talking about…oh god it sounds so interesting and I could already imagine what the story is all about from the way u described it…I wonder how come I wasn’t aware of such movie…I must make it a point to browse this movie on the internet to get a better picture of it. Thanks a lot for sharing your thoughts about this movie..I am pretty sure that this kind of movie will make us a better person and it also teaches us to appreciate the hardships our ancestors went through in order to give us the life we live in now…Furthermore ,I would rather be watching something like this compared to any other movies which don’t benefit me in any way. Tq again sis and I can’t wait to get my hands on this movie..
Again I would like stress that, no matter who we are, we should always be proud of it and never feel embarrassed to admit what we have and don’t have.
SUBASHINI A/P SHANMUGAM PJJ BPTESL4~(J40730)~
Dear Puan Jue and friends,
ReplyDeleteIt does not matter whether we are born black or white. It is just colour. Each has a function in this world. Each is created with an important role to play. But what has saddened the poet is that his existence is not being acknowledged by the whites. He and his people are only being regarded as tools or worst labeled as slaves making the whites’ life comfortable as he writes that he has been told by Caesar “to keep his door-steps clean.” He has even brushed the boots of Washington. He is also telling others that even when they are very capable (building pyramids and mortars) they are not seen as contributors to the building of a nation. They are not being recognized as equal working citizens. Whatever are their talents and contributions have no value because they are of the wrong colour. His intention of writing the poem, I think is to create awareness of his people pleas- Don’t judge the book by its cover. It is clear in his line “I’ve been a singer, I carried my sorrow songs.” Here it may means his people is creative and talented too (not everybody can sing) or it may means he is sad by how they are treated that he hopes to tell (sing) people how they are hurt. And I think to ensure his message comes across, he uses simply language but in a cynical tone so that people can ‘see’ how they must have felt.
As readers, we must realize everybody has feelings; even the blacks. We forget that everybody is God’s creation and he makes us equal. Who are we to decide whose life has got more value and needed to be served by the lesser beings? I bet no one wish to be born ugly or less valuable than others. People come and go. What is remembered of that person is what he has done. That carries more weight than appearance. So, friends, I would like to call all to appreciate all and evaluate people for their ability. How many not-so-beautiful people have proven to have beautiful voice? The American Idols has shown that many times i.e Suzanne Boyle. Or have we forgotten great blacks like Michael Jackson, Muhammad Ali, Barack Obama, Pele or even the not-so-white like Jimmy Choo whom have been very successful? So, again friends, don’t judge wrongly and don’t look down on ourselves either.
(NORIAH BT. MOHAMED – J40724 : PJJ TESL-SEM 4)
Hi Puan Ju and my fellow bloggers,
ReplyDeleteWow! BRAVO! This goes to Levinia, well said my dear. Thanks for further enlightening me with history during Ceaser, Washington and the history behind Mississippi and Congo.
To add on to my previous post,
Yes, my dear friends, it is so true that being a black himself he is proudly saying that I am a Negro who is meant to be black and black as the night. The use of the word my Africa connotes his pride in being an African. He has no shame, no reluctance. As I read these lines my auditory imagery is of a negro holding his head high up and at the same time claiming to be who he is. The repetition of the last stanza conveys how strongly he holds on to the fact that he is a negro so what, just as the white people we have had our contribution to the world and history.
Yes the third stanza conveys the strength and hard work that the negro people have put forth in building the pyramids that are much talked about till today. They also have had their share of contribution to the world of music. It was their only form of entertainment that lightened the burden in their hearts. I carried my sorrow songs. They have also been victims of the Belgians who cut of their hands.
Despite having gone through so much in life never once has the negro regretted nor cried over his fate of being a black. Be what may be, I am black and I am proud to be…..
Nachammai Singaravadivelu BPTESL SEM 4 J40803
This poem was written by a very famous poet named Langston Hughes. He was a Harlem Renaissance poet which means he lived during the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920's.
ReplyDeleteThis was a time when racial pride was represented in the idea that through things like art, music, and literature, blacks could challenge racism. This is highly reflected in all of his poems, especially this one, entitled "Negro".
This peom reflects the history of African Americans and the trials and tribulations they endured in the past and continue to endure in the present. Hughes describes himself and his race as having been a slave, worker, singer and victim who suffered discrimination in several different ways from several different people in several different places.
I believe,by doing this Hughes shows himself, one black man, as the entire black race throughout history. Hughes uses many allusions in this poem, alluding to Julius Caeser, George Washington, and the Woolworth Building to show the large role black people played throughout history.
This poem describes the real events. It enlightens me to how far African-Americans as a people have come.
I can feel the extreme pain and suffering in his words as he describes the different roles of a "negro".
Sorry to address this statement..but just to pour in my thoughts as thats what Dr.Juridah wants us to do...I would like to state a statement here...but before that.. sorry and no hard feelings please...
Obviously, I am not a Negro but an Indian who is off different colour...Certain incidents that had happen in front my own very eyes and to myself in most places in Malaysia (to be specific in the village areas where I teach in Pahang) made me feel all the words wrote by Mr. Langston Hughes.The word 'keling'and other sad
comments are used to address me and fellow mates..
Frankly....from the bottom of my heart.. I hope this type of problems will never occur in future.. But I am always happy and lucky to get those friends who are very understanding...
SIVASANGHARI A/P NADARAJAN
J36340
BPTESL SEM 8 (UPM PJJ)