Comparing Poems I, Too Sing America And Countee Cullen's Incident

The poems “Tableau” and “Incident” by Countee Cullen are about racism, but both have a different take on it. The African American author wrote in 1900’s , when racism was common and more acceptable. Cullen’s work became more popular during the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920’s. Both poems are developed with different writing mechanics to convey a clear message to the reader or audience. Cullen uses figurative language and tone to develop the theme in each text.

The division between whites and blacks was clearly prevalent and the United States of America was a racially discriminatory society reinforced by its racist laws. Hughes took the initiative to speak his mind via poetry, resulting in his piece “I, Too”. In this poem, Hughes clearly signifies one thing: Just because his skin color is different from whites, does not mean that they get to sing the National Anthem louder. Arguing that all American citizens are the same, disregarding their skin color, Hughes applies in this poem a master-slave relationship. The assumed white master shows disrespect to his servant by sending him away whenever visitors come over, because he is ordered to eat secluded from the company. However he seems to not be faze by this and actually finds it funny, supported by “But I laugh” (5). Furthermore, not only does he find amusement in this unpleasant situation, but the isolation has a positive effect on him “And grow strong” (7), implying that even though he submits to his master, his spirit will not be diminished.

Hughes did not make this poem very long and narrative, instead, he made it quick and to the point. On line three he says, "They send me to eat in the kitchen when company comes." In saying those words, he is saying that the people are inferring that because he is of darker color he has been scolded and deprived of his freedom. The people have sent him to the kitchen to eat because they felt that he was not of high enough standards to eat in the kitchen when the company comes. Also, this may mean that the people are afraid of what the company might say when they see a black man in the house.

There is also evidence when he said that he is the darker brother and they sent him to eat in the kitchen which is talking about Hughes` being treated unfairly. In the second stanza he says “ Tomorrow, I’ll be at the table when company comes. Nobody’ll dare say to me, “Eat in the Kitchen,” then”. He talks about the future when he is a well known poet and everyone will be treated equally, he will be treated the same as the people who used to treat him

In the first couple of lines in Hughes’s poem he speaks upon past African American struggles and encourages them to move forward from them with the use of his refrain lines, ‘that day is past,’ and ‘bitter was the day.’ He makes various references “responding to the early days of depression, moreover…having a range of tone, language, and insight…” (Shulman 295), to speak upon slavery and inequality. For example, he awakens the memories of slaves being lynched, whipped, and

Hughes’s poem is more of an argument against that of the people (whites) back then who were prejudice against blacks. With the first couple of lines of “I, Too, Sing America”, the lines mean that even if he is sent to the “kitchen” when “company” comes, he’ll still laugh and eat well and grow stronger from the experience, not really seeing it as if it were bad but more of a motivation to stop it from happening again. When coming to the lines of “Tomorrow, I'll be at the table When company comes. Nobody’ll dare Say to me, “Eat in the Kitchen,” Then”, the lines that are given here are just saying that this time around he’ll be at the “table” when the “company” and no one

The poems “The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus and “I Hear America Singing” by Walt Whitman, exemplify the idea of American freedom in its purest form. While one poem talks about one most important symbols in American history, and another talks about the average American’s way of life, both poems convey the of American triumph and success.

The metaphor in line 3, “They send me to eat in the kitchen When company comes,” expresses the oppression that African Americans still face (Hughes). However, as the poem progresses, a sense of hope appears. Found in line 15, “Besides, They’ll see how beautiful I am And be ashamed---” the true value of African Americans will soon enough prevail (Hughes). In “I Too”, the narrator’s use of personal pronouns symbolizes the entirety of African Americans and how the oppression denotes isolation.

Throughout the poem Incident by Countee Cullen, the author uses the change of tone to reflect the ideas and purpose of the Harlem Renaissance. Throughout the poem, the tone changes from the young child being thrilled about arriving to a heartbreaking memory. In the poem, cullen writes “Once riding in old Baltimore? Heart-filled, head filled with glee/ I saw a Baltimorean/ Keep looking straight at me/ Now I was eight and very small,/ And he was no whit bigger,” (lines 1-6). In this part of the poem, the child had just recently arrived in Baltimore and is more than excited to be in a different place other than in the plantations. He’s very optimistic about meeting someone whom he thought would be his friend. The tone explains how during the Harlem

In I, Too, Sing America when Langston Hughes writes of a darker brother who is told to eat in the kitchen you know that he is talking about African Americans. In this poem Langston Hughes writes a stanza that changes your idea of what the poem is about. He says “ Tomorrow, I’ll be at the table when company comes. Nobody’ll dare say to me, “Eat in the Kitchen,” then”. This line is is clearly stating the main idea of the poem right there. It’s telling us of how now there is segregation, but one day in the future all men will be equal.

The Harlem Renaissance was a time where creativity flourished throughout the African American community. At the time many African Americans were treated as second class citizens. The Harlem Renaissance acted as artistic and cultural outlet for the African-American community. The Harlem Renaissance, otherwise known as “The New Negro Movement” was an unexpected outburst of creative activity among African Americans In the poems Harlem by Langston Hughes, America by Claude McKay, and Incident by Countee Cullen all use frustration and hope as reoccurring themes to help empower the African-American population and realize the injustices they face day to day. The Harlem Renaissance was a period marked by great change and forever altered the

During the 1920’s a new movement began to arise. This movement known as the Harlem Renaissance expressed the new African American culture. The new African American culture was expressed through the writing of books, poetry, essays, the playing of music, and through sculptures and paintings. Three poems and their poets express the new African American culture with ease. (Jordan 848-891) The poems also express the position of themselves and other African Americans during this time. “You and Your Whole Race”, “Yet Do I Marvel”, and “The Lynching” are the three poems whose themes are the same. The poets of these poems are, as in order, Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, and Claude Mckay.

Hughes does a phenomenal job by including imagery in his poems, it gives the reader something to visualize while reading his works. In Hughes’s poem “I, Too”, Hughes talks about social inequality between him and white people. Hughes writes, “I am the darker brother.” (Hughes 1). Meaning that he is the darkest skin tone in the room. Hughes goes on into telling the reader(s) how white people are treating him; Hughes writes, “They send me to eat in the kitchen / When company comes / But I laugh / And eat well, / And grow strong” (Hughes 2-6). Hughes is saying that when the white people that he is around make him go eat alone in the kitchen, so the white people that have come to eat dinner will not see him. While Hughes is eating in the kitchen,

The great philosopher Plato once orated: “Every heart sings a song, incomplete, until another heart whispers back. PBS defines the the Harlem Renaissance a “Cultural, social, and artistic explosion that took place in Harlem between the end of World War I and the middle of the 1930s. During this period Harlem was a cultural center, drawing black writers, artists, musicians, photographers, poets, and scholars.” Those who wish to sing always find a song. At the touch of a lover, everyone becomes a poet.”Authors such as Langston Hughes, Lucille Clifton, and Colleen McElroy explore their cultural heritage through hard-hitting poetry.