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Glen Medved

Professor Chuck Malenfant

ENC1102, Tuesday, 12:30 PM

3 April 2012

The Traditional Past to Langston Hughes: A History in History

Many suppose that before Langston Hughes era, black literature was mostly

timid and traditional. These same critics believe that Langston Hughes was

revolutionizing poetry and going completely modern and overly realistic. However, the

conclusion that these said critics seem to jump to is that he totally threw away the past.

This isnt the case. While Langston Hughes was somewhat more realistic and modernist

in his execution and style (using the given media), he still held onto certain historical and

traditional elements are far as content and message goes. This can be seen in many of his

collected poems. One mere example, to state, would be one of his better-known works,

the benchmark titled The Negro Speaks of Rivers, which contains several historical

references and refers to an allegorical past. There are countless other examples of this

exemplified nostalgia included in the multitude of Hughes' poetry, mostly referring to an

African past as a whole; along with that, there also is contained specific historical

settings, factual existing figures, certain recorded events, and even biblical references.

However, this isn't to say he wasn't, to some extent, a modern poet. The

misconception here is that he is seen as completely modern and was unwilling to look at

tradition in the slightest. Langston Hughes was indeed a modernist, yet still somewhat

held to a worldly past, thus ensuring a combinative approach. According to one critic,

Hughes inserted a modernist vision into his work via the use of "traditional blues"
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(Komunyakaa). Komunyakaa continues, however, to mention one of Hughes' most

important poems "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" and states that it "plumbs the 'muddy

bosom' of the Mississippi after its narrator praises the Euphrates and the Congo," giving it

a hint of tradition, both domestic and foreign. Hughes received and still receives plenty of

labels, mostly dealing with the modern movement of his time a "realistic position

assumed by Hughes" (Wright) and even as far as a "realist approach" with his "poems

consequently bring into question the critical distinction between 'realism' and the 'avant-

garde'" (Patterson). Referring to Hughes' poem "Cubes," critic Moglen states that it "is at

once an innovative modernist experiment" most certainly one of many. On top of all

this, Hughes was praised for his aesthetic simplicity (which, by the means of his style and

execution, is undoubtedly true) Hughes is well known for his Simple stories, owing to

the racial critique he provides in them (Brox). According to one critic's book review,

Hughes' most renowned play, Mulatto, was deemed by another writer, McLaren, as (for

Hughes), a "tragic mode fashioned out of historical, social, and political injustice," thus

simultaneously combining historical relevance and the social and political issues of his

time (Okafor-Newsum).

So again, what is to say about the various historical allegories included in the

poetry that Langston Hughes published during the period of the Harlem Renaissance?

Through out the early 1920s up until the early 1930s, the Harlem Renaissance saw a

prolific Hughes partake in one of the most significant cultural and literary movements in

history. He published a considerable number of poems in literary magazines (most

notably The Crisis, beginning in 1921) and even published his first book of collected

poetry (The Weary Blues, in 1926) during this time. Many of these poems held a tie to
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tradition and history. From the poems encompassing an African past as an entirety

"Lament for Dark Peoples," "Afraid," "Being Old," and "Afro-American Fragment" to

the poems envisioning particular people, places, and events of past times "Jazzonia,"

"Brass Spittoons," "Lincoln Monument: Washington," and "October 16: The Raid" and

even to the poems combining all aspects of African diaspora, personal heritage, and

historical allegory "The Negro Speaks of Rivers," "Negro," and "America" there

exists a definite answer to the question of whether or not Hughes had intentions of

throwing away a traditional past. The answer is simply no; he most definitely did not.

Plenty of critics would agree. Referring to The Weary Blues, critic Date states that

"despite the book's title, it contains very few blues about half the book is lyric poems,"

including some that are "relatively traditional nature poems" and some that is "poetry

employing western images and conventions." Date continues to mention that Hughes

wrote of exotic topics "another clime and time" and then mentions the fact that

although Hughes tended to solely focus on African-Americans and social issues, he still

held influence from other poets "particularly Carl Sandburg and Walt Whitman" thus

ensuring a likely historical perspective from Hughes as far as literary sway goes,

regardless of his personal bias and his own agenda. A mixture of concerns those of

"history, memory, and meaning" remain exemplified in Langston Hughes' works

(Jordan). "Themes such as the African past, slavery, freedom, lynching and migration

figure powerfully in [Hughes'] art." Jordan moves on to mention the artistic mode of

expression was easily "accessible to a broad audience of African Americans," and

explicitly states "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" and "Afro-American Fragment" as two

examples of Hughes looking back at history, before he finally asks: "What were the
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cultural politics of this art? Why was it so concerned with shared experience and

collective memory?"

The benchmark poem written in 1921, "The Negro Speaks of Rivers," is an

excellent example of historical reference pursued by Hughes. Hughes manufactured a

common consciousness for a diaspora that was desperately looking for a history and an

identity when he wrote The Negro Speaks of Rivers (Raub). Hughes concludes the

poem with an homage to his and his peoples past "I've known rivers: / Ancient, dusky

rivers. / My soul has grown deep like the rivers." (Hughes 527-8, lines 9-11). In addition

to the over-all tributary message, Hughes began with more specific allusions "I bathed

in the Euphrates when dawns were young. / I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled

me to sleep. / I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it. / I heard the

singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went down to New Orleans, and I've seen

its muddy bosom turn all golden in the sunset." (Hughes 527-8, lines 4-8). The reference

to the Cradle of Civilization that of the region of ancient Mesopotamia along with

the overt references to the tropical rainforest and desert regions of Africa (the Congo

river basin and ancient Egyptian civilization, respectively) all come to show you that

even in one of Hughes first few written poems, there exists in his persona a hint of

historical intimation. To add, even a national past is apparent here; a reference to African-

American slavery is obviously alluded to (the Mississippi Rivers relation to the trade

itself), thus further depicting a social-political message of some sort, yet still remaining

historical in nature.

In 1922, Hughes wrote the explicitly allusive "Negro" (Hughes, Rampersad, and

Roessel 24). The middle majority of the poem is as follows: "I've been a slave: / Caesar
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told me to keep his door-steps clean. / I brushed the boots of Washington. / I've been a

worker: / Under my hand the pyramids arose. / I made mortar for the Woolworth

Building. / I've been a singer: / All the way from Africa to Georgia. / I carried my sorrow

songs. / I made ragtime. / I've been a victim: / The Belgians cut off my hands in the

Congo. / They lynch me still in Mississippi." (lines 4-16). The allusions are more obvious

than anything else, several being mentioned here. An image of slavery in the ancient

Roman empire and revolutionary America is shown, via the mention of Julius Caesar and

George Washington themselves. The Egyptian pyramid-building allegory contained here

along with the reference to the atrocities that Africa endured in the Age of Imperialism

(The Belgians cut off my hands) also show off an historical tie of some sort, both

setting off imagery and sending out a controversial message at the same time.

Hughes comes off as allegorical in the poem Jazzonia, which he wrote in 1923

(Hughes, Rampersad, and Roessel 34). One stanza of the poem is as follows: "Were Eve's

eyes / In the first garden / Just a bit too bold? / Was Cleopatra gorgeous / In a gown of

gold?" (lines 9-13). Hughes portrays an allusion to female beauty and focuses on two

specific figures, both in the Bible and in recorded history. As to the poem itself, the

historical attachment is less relevant, yet still stands as enough to support the claim of his

traditional position.

In 1924, Langston Hughes wrote "Lament for Dark Peoples," which describes just

that, a lamentable past (Hughes, Rampersad, and Roessel 39). The following addresses

African past as a whole: "They drove me out of the forest. / They took me away from the

jungles. / / Now they've caged me. / In the circus of civilization." (lines 5-6 and 9-10).

The apparent Middle Passage mention, referring to the triangular trade that occurred
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in the Atlantic (the transportation of millions of Africans to the New World to have been

sold as slaves), comes to show one more time that Hughes remained tied to history,

whether it was for the sole intention of bringing out a social-political message, for the

sake of looking back in nostalgic retrospection, or perhaps even for both.

The six-line poem, "Afraid," which Hughes wrote in 1924, supports his historical

position as well (Hughes, Rampersad, and Roessel 41). "We cry among the skyscrapers /

As our ancestors / Cried among the palms in Africa" (lines 1-3). Although a silent outcry

of some sort (a seemingly desperate, quietly-toned political message that seems to call for

so much), it still serves as a rough basis for all that Hughes ever wrote in regards to his

people and their struggle, history-wise. A minimalist simplicity a total of six lines long

that really does tell you that much about his feelings on his contemporary struggle, yet

still pertains to a past.

Hughes later wrote "America" sometime around 1926 (Hughes, Rampersad, and

Roessel 52-53). The history is explicitly shown in the following lines: "Out of yesterday

/ The chains of slavery; / Out of yesterday, / The ghettos of Europe; / Out of yesterday, /

The poverty and pain of the old, old world," / / "You and I. / And I? / Who am I? /

You know me: / I am Crispus Attucks at the Boston Tea Party; / Jimmy Jones in the ranks

of the last black troops marching for democracy. / I am Sojourner Truth preaching and

praying for the goodness of this wide, wide land;" (lines 11-16, 31-37). Whether you

focus on his sentimental attachment to his peoples past via lines 11 through 16, or the

certain figures he alludes to (all prominent people in black history) via lines 31 through

37, you still envision history in general. The various references come to show you that

Hughes did not disregard his people, whether it was out of his own desire not to and for
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the sake of personal retrospection, or if it was out of a certain fuel for putting out a

social-political message. Either way, the history is there, and the point still stands

Hughes used it.

"Brass Spittoons" was written in 1926 (Hughes, Rampersad, and Roessel 86). The

biblical allegories are displayed here: "A bright bowl of brass is beautiful to the Lord /

Bright polished brass like the cymbals / Of King David's dancers, / Like the wine cups of

Solomon." (lines 32-35). Whether strictly for religious purposes or not, the allusion

(altogether relating to traditional custom) is still evinced enough to support the claim that

Langston Hughes was attached to his own foretime.

The year 1927 saw "Lincoln Monument: Washington" one of Hughes many

tributary poems (Hughes, Rampersad, and Roessel 103). The patriotic homage is as

follows: "Let's go see old Abe / Sitting in the marble and the moonlight, / Sitting lonely

in the marble and the moonlight, / Quiet for ten thousand centuries, old Abe. / Quiet for a

million, million years." (lines 1-5). While a social-political call for action, Hughes still

used his nations history as a basis the very president that abolished the enslavement of

Hughes people seems to be maximally referred to through means of dedication.

"Being Old," Hughes 1927 poem, is a satisfactory example of his nostalgic and

biblical attachment (Hughes, Rampersad, and Roessel 109). The start and end of the

poem is as follows: "You do not understand. / But we are old / As the jungle trees / That

bloomed forever, / Old as the forgotten rivers / That flowed into the earth." / / "And

stars forget. / Solomon built a temple / And it must have fallen down. / It isn't here now."

(lines 2-7, 16-19). Hughes denotes an African past as an entirety, setting up the place of

his peoples continent in the form of imagery, and then further concludes with a subtler
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biblical reference in the form of symbolism.

The start of the next decade, 1930, saw the retrospective poem titled "Afro-

American Fragment" (Hughes, Rampersad, and Roessel 129). The very beginning and

very end of the poem is as follows: "So long, / So far away / Is Africa. / Not even

memories alive / Save those that history books create," / / "So long, / So far away / Is

Africa's / Dark face." (lines 1-5, 21-24). The nostalgia depicted here is clearly visible;

Hughes himself even mentions history books to further prove the point he is making in

the poem. He literarily embraces Africa for all it was and is.

Hughes wrote the historical "October 16: The Raid" in 1931, one of the last years

that the Harlem Renaissance took place in (Hughes, Rampersad, and Roessel 141-42).

The first part is as follows: "Perhaps / You will remember / John Brown. / John Brown /

Who took his gun, / Took twenty-one companions / White and black, / Went to shoot

your way to freedom / Where two rivers meet / And the hills of the / North / And the hills

of the / South / Look slow at one another / And died / For your sake." (lines 1-16). The

history is evident; the event took place on October 16th, 1859, where John Brown, an

American revolutionary abolitionist, led twenty-one men on an attack on a pro-slavery

federal armory located in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. Hughes is seen here celebrating

Browns actions. With this specific poem, along with a couple other aforementioned

works dealing with a national past, Langston Hughes reclaims from American history

the right to reimagine Black humanity, and, indeed, humankind" (Miller 54).

Many labels can be attributed to Langston Hughes as a modernist poet a realist,

a cubist, a proponent of aesthetic simplicity, and so on and so forth. However, many do

not realize they are ignoring the past of our past, the historical and traditional outlook that
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Hughes himself had on the environment around him, when they make the rapid

assumption that all he did was start anew and only focus on his contemporary world. He

looked back, and in retrospect, he put his feelings and thoughts on paper in the form of

his poetry. The Harlem Renaissance saw a prominent Hughes, and during the entirety of

the 1920s up until the early 1930s, he wrote and published numerous poems concerning

history and tradition not only related to him and his people, but to everyone else as well.

These poems range from envisioning an African past as a totality perhaps even in regards

to Hughes' personal heritage to recounting historical people, places, and events and

even to approaching the two together, a merging of both the "African diaspora" and the

allegorical referencing, all put into one form. To reiterate, Langston Hughes did indeed

own a pair of "nostalgic eyes," and anyone claiming otherwise is mistaken, because the

evidence is overwhelming. On top of the said labels, Hughes would rightfully earn the

title of "a deep appreciator of time's past," and would not be very far from "black

historian."
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Works Cited

Brox, Ali. "Simple On Satire: Langston Hughes, Gender, And Satiric Double-

Consciousness." Studies In American Humor 3.21 (2010): 15-28. Humanities Full

Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 20 Mar. 2012.

Dace, Tish. "The Weary Blues: Overview." Reference Guide to American Literature. Ed.

Jim Kamp. 3rd ed. Detroit: St. James Press, 1994. Literature Resources from

Gale. Web. 26 Mar. 2012.

Hughes, Langston. "The Negro Speaks of Rivers." Literature and the Writing Process.

Ed. Elizabeth McMahan, Susan X. Day, Robert Funk, and Linda S. Coleman. 9th

ed. Boston: Longman, 2011. 527-28. Print.

Hughes, Langston, Arnold Rampersad, and David Roessel. The Collected Poems of

Langston Hughes. New York: Random House, 1994. 23-142. Books.google.com:

Google Books. Web. 26 Mar. 2012.

Jordan, Glenn. "Re-Membering The African-American Past." Cultural Studies 25.6

(2011): 848-891. Humanities Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 20 Mar. 2012.

Komunyakaa, Yusef. Langston Hughes + Poetry = The Blues. Callaloo, Vol. 25, No. 4

(Autumn, 2002), pp. 1140-1143. JSTOR. Web. 26 Mar. 2012.

Miller, R. Baxter. The Art and Imagination of Langston Hughes. Lexington: University

Press of Kentucky, 2006. 54. Books.google.com: Google Books. Web. 26 Mar.

2012.
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Moglen, Seth. "Modernism in the Black Diaspora: Langston Hughes and the Broken

Cubes of Picasso." Callaloo , Vol. 25, No. 4 (Autumn, 2002), pp. 1188-1205.

JSTOR. Web. 26 Mar. 2012.

Okafor-Newsum, Ikechukwri. "Langston Hughes: Folk Dramatist in the Protest

Tradition, 1921-1943." Research in African Literatures 31.3 (2000): 198.

Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 26 Mar. 2012.

Patterson, Anita. "Jazz, Realism, And The Modernist Lyric: The Poetry Of Langston

Hughes." Modern Language Quarterly 61.4 (2000): 651-682. Humanities Full

Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 26 Mar. 2012.

Raub, Bonnie. "The Light That Insists On Itself In The World: Lucille Clifton And

African American Consciousness." CLA Journal 51.4 (2008): 356-377.

Humanities Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 20 Mar. 2012.

Wright, Richard. "Forerunner and Ambassador." Literature and the Writing Process. Ed.

Elizabeth McMahan, Susan X. Day, Robert Funk, and Linda S. Coleman. 9th ed.

Boston: Longman, 2011. 543. Print.