How Does Langston Hughes Use Literary Devices In Mother To Son
In "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes, the literary device being used is dialect to communicate the mothers message on how life may be hard but you have to work through it.
Dialect is a particular form of a language that is peculiar to a specific region or social group. Dialect is used to help the reader understand the characteristics of the speaker like the speakers education level. In this case, the dialect is from a black, working, uneducated mother. This poem is about a mother who grew up without crystal stairs but with stairs that had tacks, splinters, and torn up board, meaning her life hasn't been easy. In "Morther to Son", Lagnston Hughes uses " I’se been a-climbin’ on, / And reachin’ landin’s, / And turnin’ corners, " ( 9-11), to
explain to her son that life isn't going to be easy and that their will be bumps and turns but you stillI have to continue to live. Hughes uses an apostrophe instead of using a "G" to end the mothers words. That tells the reader that the speaker is black because it is known that that's how some blacks speak. In "Mother to Son" Langston Hughes also uses dialect another time in the poem, "For I’se still goin’, honey, / I’se still climbin’," (18-19), to tell the son that the mother is still working hard. Also the word "ain't" is often used by African Americans. The literary devices in both of this passages explains who the mother is and what she is teaching her son. The language in this poem lets the reader know that this mother has been through plenty of life changing experiences and she feels the need to share them with her. This poem seems like a farewell speech that she gave her son right before he left her house. The purpose of dialect is to get the reader to know who the speaker is and the message that the authors is trying to portray.
Dialect is a particular form of a language that is peculiar to a specific region or social group. Dialect is used to help the reader understand the characteristics of the speaker like the speakers education level. In this case, the dialect is from a black, working, uneducated mother. This poem is about a mother who grew up without crystal stairs but with stairs that had tacks, splinters, and torn up board, meaning her life hasn't been easy. In "Morther to Son", Lagnston Hughes uses " I’se been a-climbin’ on, / And reachin’ landin’s, / And turnin’ corners, " ( 9-11), to
explain to her son that life isn't going to be easy and that their will be bumps and turns but you stillI have to continue to live. Hughes uses an apostrophe instead of using a "G" to end the mothers words. That tells the reader that the speaker is black because it is known that that's how some blacks speak. In "Mother to Son" Langston Hughes also uses dialect another time in the poem, "For I’se still goin’, honey, / I’se still climbin’," (18-19), to tell the son that the mother is still working hard. Also the word "ain't" is often used by African Americans. The literary devices in both of this passages explains who the mother is and what she is teaching her son. The language in this poem lets the reader know that this mother has been through plenty of life changing experiences and she feels the need to share them with her. This poem seems like a farewell speech that she gave her son right before he left her house. The purpose of dialect is to get the reader to know who the speaker is and the message that the authors is trying to portray.