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Analysis Of Harlem By Langston Hughes

Decent Essays

“Harlem” by Langston Hughes explains the importance of following your dreams. In the poem, Hughes explains that if you ignore a dream it will slowly get less and less appealing to you until it goes away completely. Hughes writes, “What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?” (Lines 1-3). Langston Hughes uses this simile to explain to the reader that your ambitions can’t be forgotten about because they will deteriorate and turn into nothing. Hughes also says, “Or fester like a sore and then run? Does it stink like rotten meat?” (Lines 4-6). In this comparison, Hughes uses a sore and rotten meat to show the reader that a dream that is neglected can fill you with regret until you cannot take it anymore. If you …show more content…

“Harlem” can change the way the reader thinks about their future and even change the way they live their life. Millions of people struggle with trying to find a reason to follow one of their dreams, but Hughes explains several in “Harlem”.
“Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening” by Robert Frost is about the loneliness and darkness in his own life. Frost uses the woods in the story as a way to portray his current situation in life. In the poem Frost writes, “The woods are lovely, dark and deep, but I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep…” (Lines 13-15). Frost describes the woods as dark and desolate which is a metaphor for how he feels in life. He explains how they are far from town and there isn’t anyone near him. This could mean he keeps himself guarded from others to avoid getting hurt or hurting others. In “Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening” Frost writes, “Between the woods and frozen lake the darkest evening of the year” ( Lines 7-8). Frost compares a dark evening with the darkness and sadness in his life, saying that right now he is as depressed as he has every been.
“Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening” is similar to “Harlem” by Langston Hughes because both poems stress the point that everyone will enjoy life more if they do the things that make them happy. Hughes and Frost use metaphors and similes to show the outcome of an unaccomplished life. “Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening” is

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