Comparing Langston Hughes And Maya Angelou's Poems

In this essay I will be arguing how Langston Hughes and Maya Angelou similar writing styles affected their community and brought to light a positive way of thinking. Langston Hughes was an American poet, social activist, and novelist from Missouri. Hughes played an influential role in the Harlem Renaissance era. Hughes was known for being conscious and it echoed in his work. He used music as well as imagery to tell the world the struggles that African-Americans endure in their era. Hughes poems told stories that were relatable and reflected his community. Maya Angelou was an American poet, actress, civil rights activist, along with many other things. As a civil rights activist, Angelou worked alongside with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and

They both have similar themes. Angelou’s poem “Lesson” discusses the hardships that the African- American community was undergoing. She also talks about perseverance through it all and how they should not give although they might fail at first. In order to succeed you must try, try and try again. For example in the poem she Angelou states “Not convince me against the challenge. The years and cold defeat live deep in lines along my face. They dull my eyes, yet I keep on dying, because I love to live.” Angelou is saying that although the African- American community has been defeated in the past; they should not let stop them from achieving their dreams. This is similar to “A Dream Deferred” because both of these poems are showing that the struggle is worth obtaining your dreams in the

In the “Caged Bird” Angelou’s comparison to the caged bird was African-Americans in the society they were living in. She symbolized the bird with African-Americans experiences. In the second stanza the poem states “But a bird that stalks down his narrow cage can seldom see through his bars of rage his wings are clipped and his feet are tied so he opens his throat to sing”. This is comparison to African-Americans in their society. When African- Americans were enslaved they use to sing songs to uplift their spirits because that’s all they could do. They were physically bound and mentally brain-washed. The songs was there way of showing they still had fight left in them. In the fourth stanza it states “The free bird thinks of another breeze and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees and the fat worms waiting on a dawn bright lawn and he names the sky his own”. This is saying the while African-Americans were enslaved and oppressed they watched Caucasians be free and do as they pleased. Although at the time African-Americans never experienced freedom they yearned for it. They knew it had to be better then what they were enduring. Racism is considered the cage around the caged bird, and it means not getting treated fairly with jobs, medical treatment, and even get