Analysis Of Langston Hughes Theme For English B

Explication of “Theme for English B”

“The instructor said, Go home and write a page tonight. And let that page come out of you—Then, it will be true.” This quote is taken from the poem “Theme for English B” written by the poet Langston Hughes in 1951. In this poem Hughes discusses the implications of race within education and thought as well as how it is that we, as individuals, know who we are and what our proper station is in life. Within the workings of this poem there are many meanings that could be extracted, but the main theme of this poem is the struggle to fine one’s identity and all that is contained within it. First off, the identity of the speaker on a more surface level is that
That question is what makes black people so different from white people besides a larger amount of melanin in their skin? The emphasis on the word “not” in this section is in no way meant to signify an actual disbelief but rather to utilize a ‘double negative to allude to his positivity and the repudiation of such a premise’ (Rukhaya, “Poetry”). The author uses simple diction to disguise the greater and, at the time, almost insurmountable obstacle of racism and the struggle of African Americans to find their voice in a society that evidently favored white men. He goes on to discuss in lines 26 through 29 the color of his “page” and to explain that although his page will not be white it will be a “part” of his instructor. There are several ways this line itself could be interpreted, but in the case of this paper it appears as though Hughes is once again referring to the theme of identity. Hughes goes so far as to write “You are white– yet a part of me, as I am a part of you. That’s American” giving even further evidence that the speaker is considering his own identity and reflecting upon the melting pot that is America. In a nation such as America it is impossible to ignore the great diversity in race and culture, and this fact is evidently a point that even Hughes in the 1950’s was giving thought and voice to.
In order to be truly able to find one’s identity the individual in question must have the freedom to explore their options and be given the opportunity to truly develop into who it is that they are meant to be. Langston Hughes was a writer in the midst of the Harlem Renaissance, a movement spanning the 1920’s to 1920’s which was also known as the “New Negro Movement” during which ideas of black equality grew exponentially. Although “Theme for English B” was published roughly 20 years after the ‘conclusion’ of the Renaissance it is flavored strongly with many of the sentiments held by African Americans of the time. In lines 34 through 39 Hughes