Scottsboro By Langston Hughes Analysis

In the poem “Scottsboro,” Hughes talks about Christ and Gandhi because they were both important figures that stood up for what they believed in just as the Scottsboro boys did. Christ died on the cross for everybody’s sins. He had a lot of people that did not believe in him and wanted him dead. Gandhi preached about wanting peace and how he wanted the violence to end. He had a lot of people that supported him and a lot of people who didn’t. He had his life taken from him by somebody that did not support his beliefs. The Scottsboro boys were accused of raping a couple of white women. They were wrongfully accused just based off hatred and the color of their skin. They had a lot of people that believed in their innocence and a lot of people that felt that they were guilty.
The point that Hughes is making is that these individuals suffered for their beliefs, and radically changed the world systems that were in control at the time. It is also a key point that many of these individuals were killed, either by assassination or execution or suffered other violence by those they sought to oppose. He is immortalizing the 8 boys in the poem in the same way that these individuals have been immortalized in humanity’s collective memory. Hughes compares the Pennsylvania Station to a “basilica of old” because of its physical attributes. “Basilica” is an architectural style of building that was common in old churches in Rome. If one were to look at a photo of the Pennsylvania Station they would be able to see similarities in the structure styles of the Pennsylvania Station and some of the older churches in Rome. They both have beautiful pillars and the same type of arches near the