Langston Hughes Use Of Similes In Harlem

Hughes then writes that the dream possibly “...sags / like a heavy load” (l. 9). Unlike the previous similes, Hughes ends this simile with a period instead of a question mark. This structure gives the speaker a more resigned tone and makes the possibility of the dream sagging like a heavy load more certain. Hughes nearly confirms through this syntax that the deferred dream weighs the speaker down but the speaker will not attain his dream. As a whole, the series of similes in “Harlem” conveys the ironic lack of opportunities for African Americans, as they live in the “land of opportunity” but cannot achieve their dreams. Hughes’s focus on specific elements of life, like a county fair in “Merry-Go-Round” and a dream in “Harlem,” captures the essence of African Americans’ struggles with racism.

For example, A Passage to India by E.M. Forster displays racism directed from English elites against Indians. This form of racism stems from colonization, as India was a British colony in the time period in which the novel was written. In the novel, the institution of colonization establishes the idea that Englishmen are superior to Indians. In the beginning of the novel, two English women discuss how they manage their interactions with Indians. “‘I’ve avoided,’ said Miss Quested. ‘Excepting my own servant, I’ve scarcely spoken to an Indian since landing’” (Forster, 25). This system in which Indians work under the English creates the notion that the Indians are beneath and are not worthy of conversations with the British. English characters in the novel also look down on Indians due to their cultural differences. When considering the justice system in India, one character states, “‘...When you think of crime you think of English crime. The psychology here is different...’” (Forster,