Langston Hughes

About the Author

Hughes was born in 1902 to mixed-race parents in Joplin, Missouri. His parents’ marriage was unhappy, and they divorced when he was a young child. As a result, Hughes’s living situation was often in flux; he lived in 12 different cities before the age of 12. His relationship with his parents, especially his mother, continued to be strained throughout his life. Indeed, some have suggested that the plot of “Thank you, M’am” may draw on Hughes’s own tenuous childhood and the eventual stability he found living with his grandmother, with whom he moved in as a teenager. His storied career as a poet had an unlikely start: as a high schooler, his all-white classmates named him class poet, on the basis that his race gave him an innate understanding of rhythm. Despite the dubiousness of this claim, Hughes discovered his natural aptitude for verse. He published his first book of poetry, The Weary Blues, in 1926, before finishing his college degree. His poetry was influenced by jazz and the experience of working-class black Americans. As Harlem became a center for art and social protest, Hughes’s work and life became inextricably linked to the Harlem Renaissance. To this day, Hughes remains one of the most-read and beloved writers of this period. While most celebrated for his poetry, Hughes also wrote novels, musicals, children’s literature, short stories, essays, and plays. He died in 1967 from complications from cancer.

LitCharts guides for works by Langston Hughes

Explore LitCharts literature and poetry guides for works by Langston Hughes. Each literature guide includes a full summary, detailed analysis, and helpful resources. Each poetry guide offers line-by-line analysis and exploration of poetic devices.

As I Grew Older

"As I Grew Older" appears in Langston Hughes's first collection of poems, The Weary Blues (1926), one of the landmark books of the Harlem Renaissance. Its intense, symbolic language expresses frust... view guide

Aunt Sue's Stories

"Aunt Sue's Stories" appears in Langston Hughes's first poetry collection, The Weary Blues (1926). It describes an older woman, "Aunt Sue," who tells a young child stories about her own and others'... view guide

Cross

"Cross," by the American poet Langston Hughes (1902–1967), is a short poem about the challenges of being a biracial person in a racist society. The poem's speaker, who was born to a white father an... view guide

Daybreak in Alabama

Composed during the era of segregation in the United States, “Daybreak in Alabama” expresses a deep yearning for unity in a racially divided world. Langston Hughes, one of the foremost poets of the... view guide

Democracy

“Democracy” is a poem by the American writer Langston Hughes. First published in 1949, the poem explores the Black American experience at a time of extreme segregation, inequality, and state-sponso... view guide

Dream Variations

The American poet Langston Hughes originally published "Dream Variations" in his 1926 collection titled The Weary Blues. The poem's speaker dreams of dancing through the "white day" before resting ... view guide

Dreams

"Dreams" is an early poem by American poet Langston Hughes, one of the leading figures of the 1920s arts and literary movement known as the Harlem Renaissance. Originally published in the magazine ... view guide

Harlem

Langston Hughes wrote “Harlem” in 1951 as part of a book-length sequence, Montage of a Dream Deferred. Inspired by blues and jazz music, Montage, which Hughes intended to be read as a single long p... view guide

Homecoming

"Homecoming" is a short poem by the American poet Langston Hughes, a leading figure of the Harlem Renaissance. The poem describes a homecoming that's anything but joyful: instead of returning to a ... view guide

I Look at the World

Langston Hughes's "I Look at the World" features a Black speaker who observes themselves and the world around them with fresh eyes, railing against the "walls" that racial oppression builds and cal... view guide

I, Too

“I, Too” is a poem by Langston Hughes. First published in 1926, during the height of the Harlem Renaissance, the poem portrays American racism as experienced by a black man. In the poem, white peop... view guide

Let America Be America Again

"Let America Be America Again" is a poem written by Langston Hughes in 1935 and published the following year. Hughes wrote the poem while riding a train from New York City to Ohio and reflecting on... view guide

Mother to Son

“Mother to Son” is a poem by Langston Hughes. It was first published in 1922 in The Crisis, a magazine dedicated to promoting civil rights in the United States, and was later collected in Hughes’s ... view guide

Night Funeral in Harlem

One of the most influential artists of the Harlem Renaissance, jazz poet Langston Hughes wrote "Night Funeral in Harlem" in 1951. The poem describes the funeral of a poor Black boy in Harlem, New Y... view guide

Thank You, M’am

A large, unnamed woman is lugging her heavy purse late at night when a dirty and disheveled young boy runs up behind her and attempts to steal her bag. He fails when the purse’s strap snaps, sendi... view guide

The Ballad of the Landlord

"The Ballad of the Landlord" is a 1940 poem by Langston Hughes. One of the best-known figures of the Harlem Renaissance, Hughes was inspired by his own time in New York City's Harlem neighborhood. ... view guide

The Negro Speaks of Rivers

"The Negro Speaks of River" was written in 1920 by the American poet Langston Hughes. One of the key poems of a literary movement called the "Harlem Renaissance," "The Negro Speaks of River" traces... view guide

The Weary Blues

Langston Hughes's “The Weary Blues,” first published in 1925, describes a black piano player performing a slow, sad blues song. This performance takes place in a club in Harlem, a segregated neighb... view guide

Theme for English B

“Theme for English B” was published the American poet Langston Hughes in 1951, toward the end of Hughes’s career. The poem is a dramatic monologue written in the voice of a twenty-two-year-old blac... view guide