"The Weary Blues" and "Lenox Avenue: Midnight" by Langston Hughes are two poems written as scenes of urban life. Although these poems were written more than seventy years ago‚ it is surprising to see some general similarities they share with modern day city life. Dilluted down with word play and irrelevant lines such as "And the gods are laughing at us."‚ the underlying theme is evidently urban life. "The Weary Blues" and "Lenox Avenue: Midnight" approach the general topic of urban life from two
Premium Jazz Blues Reggae
Lenox Avenue is a crucial street in Harlem‚ which to the extent the geology of New York is North‚ or uptown. We might inquire as to why Hughes has formed "down on Lenox Avenue" rather than "up on Lenox Avenue." Let’s think‚ then‚ about the character of the speaker of the ditty. Since Harlem was home basically to African Americans and the parts of New York City south of Harlem (suggested as "downtown") were populated generally by whites‚ if the speaker were to see Lenox Avenue as "up" from his place
Premium African American Black people Harlem Renaissance
In Langston Hughes’s poem titled “The Weary Blues”‚ the speaker describes an evening spent listening to a blues musician in Lenox Avenue‚ Harlem. With the help of certain poetic and acoustic techniques‚ the poem manages to evoke the same lamenting and woeful tone and mood of blues music. This essay will be a critical appreciation of this poem in which I will discuss it in the context of the Harlem Renaissance as well as examine how the Blues music functions as a means of articulating personal and
Premium Rhythm Harlem Renaissance Jazz
In the poem "The Weary Blues”‚ Langston Hughes describes an evening of listening to a blues musician in Harlem. “The Wear Blues” By: Langston Hughes Droning a drowsy syncopated tune‚ Rocking back and forth to a mellow croon‚ I heard a Negro play. Down on Lenox Avenue the other night By the pale dull pallor of an old gas light He did a lazy sway . . . He did a lazy sway . . . To the tune o’ those Weary Blues. With his ebony hands on each ivory key He made that poor piano
Premium African American Jazz Black people
The Music of Sadness “The Weary Blues‚” by Langston Hughes‚ tells a story of an unnamed narrator recalling an evening of listening to a man sing the blues one night in Harlem. Hughes uses a somber tone‚ depressed voice‚ syntax and imagery as language styles to convey a great deal of suffering that was occurring in Harlem during the mid-1900’s. In “The Weary Blues” Hughes uses imagery to communicate to the reader what the narrator is experiencing while listening to blues. The reader can feel the
Premium Management Standard deviation Racism
The Weary Blues by Langston Hughes is an influential protest poem that depicts a man in a blues bar‚ who is playing away at the piano‚ singing the blues. The poem was obviously developed at the time of the Harlem Renaissance and was published in 1923. The weary blues won multiple awards due to its influential style of writing. The Weary Blues was publish in a place called Harlem‚ which was filled with musical and artistic potential. At the time of the Harlem Renaissance‚ the musical genre known
Premium African American Black people Langston Hughes
Brandon Smith ENG 2233 A Mrs. Lowe 2 December 2009 Sweet Blues With all the different forms of literature today‚ and allowing for the variety of genres available to today’s readers‚ there are endless possibilities of options regarding a reader’s favorite piece of literature. Many of my favorites can be categorized into the country-western genre; however‚ my taste in literature is not limited to stories of cowboys and Indians. As I have aged‚ I have found that I enjoy reading literature for
Premium Fiction Literature Style
Hughes’ "Blues" Jazz music is often associated with long‚ lazy melodies and ornate rhythmical patterns. The Blues‚ a type of jazz‚ also follows this similar style. Langston Hughes’ poem‚ "The Weary Blues‚" is no exception. The sound qualities that make up Hughes’ work are intricate‚ yet quite apparent. Hughes’ use of consonance‚ assonance‚ onomatopoeia‚ and rhyme in "The Weary Blues" gives the poem a deep feeling of sorrow while‚ at the same time‚ allows the reader to feel as if he or she
Premium Rhyme Onomatopoeia Jazz
I tried in a different way: I went to YouTube and looked for someone reading out loud The Weary Blues. Then I founded Langston Hughes reciting this precise poem‚ accompanied by a jazz band. Immediately I felt transported to 1958‚ seated in the front row of the theater‚ felling a mix of rhythm and depression in the air. Then‚ sitting in a stool in front of me‚ Langston Hughes starts to recite his "Weary Blues". In the way that Langston recited the poem‚ seems for me more like a song‚ the arranged
Premium Poetry African American Black people
during the time of his writing. He told the stories of his people in ways that mirrored their genuine culture‚ including both their agony and their love of music‚ laughter‚ and language itself. The poems written by Hughes‚ “Dream Boogie” and “The weary Blues” best exemplify his love for music in his work while also combining the view of a black American’s struggle with everyday life. Both poems are based around music‚
Premium Langston Hughes African American Harlem Renaissance