Let America Be America Again Poem Analysis

In Langston Hughes poem “Let America be America Again” he talks about how America should return to the way that it was perceived to be in the dreams before America was truly America. Throughout the poem he uses various methods to evoke the patriotic images and dreams that he feels America should and will eventually be. Hughes states that America is supposed to be a place of equality for everyone including both white and colored people. During this period in time though there was not equality for everyone. Hughes talks about an America where both whites and colored people will have equality in all aspects socially, politically, and economically. What Hughes is saying is that both whites and colored

It is now a competition of millions of selfish, greedy, and covetious people, searching for riches in America. Equally important, is a clear discrimination of people based on race, religion, class, and gender that is prominent in American society. These inequalities undermine the idea of an impartial ambition permitted to all. Renowned poet, Langston Hughes, discusses this in his poem "Let America Be America Again" when he says, "For all the dreams we’ve dreamed And all the songs we’ve sung And all the hopes we’ve held And all the flags we’ve hung, The millions who have nothing for our pay— Except the dream that’s almost dead (pg 44, line 55) He is arguing that no matter how hard they seem to try, people who are different, cannot get ahead. This poem was written in 1935, if the dream was gone then, it is most certainly not attainable today. Hughes writes "America never was America to me" throughout the poem; it really emphasizes the fact that equality (an essential part of the American Dream) is no longer something made available to various groups of people. In "the land of the free" white males have the upper-hand, cutting off of the dream from everyone else. In a different light, many argue that the American Dream is not dead, and is in fact thriving more now than ever. For example, many take this argument straight from the Declaration of Independence, which laid the foundation of the

     In the poem "Let America Be America Again," Langston Hughes paints a vivid word picture of a depressed America in the 1930's. To many living in America, the idealism presented as the American Dream had escaped their grasp. In this poetic expression, a speaker is allowed to voice the unsung Americans' concern of how America was intended to be, had become to them, and could aspire to be again.

Written in the first half of the 20th century, “Let America Be America” is a poem that documents and responds to the oppressed state of the United States, in both the past and present. The poem is a plea for a return to the original principles of freedom that our country has seemingly forgotten. Additionally, the speaker sees America as the broken home to oppressed people who have lost sight of the ultimate goal of freedom and happiness. Although America is often perceived as the “land of the free,” Langston Hughes’s poem contradicts this ideology by not only painting a vivid picture of oppression in America but also by providing a desperate hope for the future.

In the poem “Let America Be America”, Langston Hughes focus is on America. He believes that America isn’t the same for everyone, not when it comes to the ‘American Dream’ that everybody is sorting after. In America people aren’t treated the same, with that said everyone in America doesn’t qualify or aren’t privileged for that dream.

The turn of the 20th century conveyed new ideas and themes of literature, art, and music. After years of mundane tradition, the Modern Era brought new themes that reshaped American society into something strikingly different. Using a variety of new themes such as alienation and techniques such as stream of consciousness. In Langston Hughes poem, “Let America Be America Again,” the audience can see the traits and techniques that represented writings in the era of modernism and projects a powerful voice about the struggles and prejudice African Americans faced living in the “homeland of the free.”

He recognizes this idea may be a tough sell but in order to be the moral leader of the world this is necessary. America has always been at the forefront of political and social change and this must not change. Hughes' poem is very insightful and can be used during any period of time it is a call upon those in power regardless the level to use their powers for

Throughout the poem Langston Hughes uses repetition of the words “America was never America to me”, to convey the message that freedom doesn't exist for people like Hughes. In lines 5 and 10, Langston Hughes says “America never was America for me” and “It never was America for me”. This goes back to the point that he has never felt a part of the so called American dream. But he is not speaking just for himself he speaking for everyone that has been dealt the disappointing end of the American dream. In lines, 20-25

In the fight for equality, people of color often feel isolated and separated from those whose privilege reinforces their oppression. However, there are and always have been white people who see the inequalities that are practiced in society and speak out against them in hopes of reaching equality for all. Langston Hughes used his voice in poetry to express his experience as a black man in the United States during the Civil Rights Movement, and his is a household name. There is no doubt that his words have power. The reader expects to feel his experience and gain empathy and understanding through his poetry. In his poem, “Let America Be America Again,” Hughes presents his experience of American life in a powerful contrast to the experience

Walt Whitman and Langston Hughes were two magnificent poets. Whitman wrote “I hear America singing.” About a century later, Hughes wrote “Let America be America again”. Although the two poets may seem they have a lot in common, they actually have more differences.

This quote means that someday in the future, African-Americans will be respected, and will not be thought of as an inferior race. In the first line of the poem, Hughes writes, “I too, sing America” (Hughes, 1). In this line, Hughes writes about his right of showing patriotism towards the country he lives in. The last line of the poem is very similar to the first, but does have a slight change, “I too, am America” (Hughes, 18).

Langston Hughes felt compelled to speak his mind for equality and his birthright freedom through his poetry. “Democracy will not come/ Today, this year/ Nor ever /Through compromise and fear” (lines 1 – 3). Hughes believed his rights as well as everybody else’s should parallel to those of the white people, without degrading themselves in any way. He declares he is an American and should have the right to stand on his two feet and own his land: “To stand/ On my two feet /And own the land” (lines 7 –

Langston Hughes’s “Let America Be America Again” is a poem that could be endlessly applied to where America stands today. This poem illustrates the morals, ideas, and visions set forth by those who found this country and how America has begun straying from those principles. The poem expresses that America is made up of all walks of people and that no man should be crushed by those above him, but rather be given the same opportunity as those above him. Hughes desire to make America great again can be shared in some way or another by most Americans making this poem everlasting. “Let America Be America Again” has the personalization, the language, the connection shared by every American, and the rhyme to allow readers of every race, gender, or religious belief to be brought together as not only people but as Americans.

In the poems “I, Too Sing America” by Langston Hughes and “ I Hear America Singing” by Walt Whitman the two poets connect their poems to the commonly known scenario that happens all over the world today, the American Expierience. The American Expierience is the expierience of being able to live in America and what you go through when you finally get there. Everyone's expierience is different in america some may get there easily and some have to go through struggle just to get there. The two poets both had unique writing styles. In most of Walt Whitman’s poems he had an emphasis on the real details of the everyday world and an epic tendency that tries to encompass almost every possible subject matter. Langston Hughes was an American poet, social activist,

It is a wish, a hope that someday prosperity will be secured. In “Let America Be America Again” the speaker speaks of the equality, the dream, and the freedom that America boasts about, but is rarely seen. The poem begins with “Let America be America again./ Let it be the dream it used to be” (Hughes 1-2). In these lines the speaker focuses on the idea that America only exists in dreams, the American Dream; but it is only a figment of the over-ingenious imagination. Hughes’ family has potential to have the American Dream, but his father’s unwillingness to stand by the racist nature takes precedence. The following line “Let it be the pioneer on the plain/ Seeking a home where he himself is free” is stating that America should go back to being “the dream dreamers dreamed,” not the nightmare dreamers awake in a sweat from (Hughes 3-4, 6-7). It should be like it was for the pioneers who sought out land where they could be free, not like the people today who strive for freedoms but inevitably fail. The speaker believes that “There’s never been equality for me,/ Nor freedom in this ‘homeland of the free’” (Hughes 16-17). This “homeland of the free” should embody liberty through equality and opportunity, not through a “false patriotic wreath” (Hughes 13). America should be “the land where every man is free” (Hughes 68-69). The speaker represents him or herself as the “poor white,” “the negro bearing slavery’s scar,” “the young man full