Subscribe: by Email | in Reader

The Negro Speaks of Rivers -- Langston Hughes

       
(Poem #410) The Negro Speaks of Rivers
I've known rivers:
I've known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow
        of human blood in human veins.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.
I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.

I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.
I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went
        down to New Orleans, and I've seen its muddy bosom turn
        all golden in the sunset.

I've known rivers:
Ancient, dusky rivers.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.
-- Langston Hughes
A theme which anywhere else would have sounded pretentious (even a touch racist,
in the title) is here imbued with a quiet dignity... I especially like the
wonderful 'richness' of its tone.

thomas.

[Biography]

 Hughes, (James Mercer) Langston

        b. Feb. 1, 1902, Joplin, Mo., U.S.
        d. May 22, 1967, New York City

Black poet and writer who became, through numerous translations, one of the
foremost interpreters to the world of the black experience in the United States.
Hughes's parents separated soon after his birth, and young Hughes was raised by
his mother and grandmother. After his grandmother's death, he and his mother
moved to half a dozen cities before reaching Cleveland, where they settled. His
poem "The Negro Speaks of Rivers," written the summer after his graduation from
high school in Cleveland, was published in  Crisis (1921) and brought him
considerable attention.

After attending Columbia University (1921-22), he explored Harlem, forming a
permanent attachment to what he called the "great dark city." He worked as a
steward on a freighter bound for Africa. Back from seafaring and sojourning in
Europe, he won an Opportunity magazine poetry prize in 1925. He received the
Witter Bynner Undergraduate Poetry Award in 1926.

While working as a busboy in a hotel in Washington, D.C., Hughes put three of
his own poems beside the plate of Vachel Lindsay in the dining room. The next
day, newspapers around the country reported that  Lindsay had discovered a Negro
busboy poet. A scholarship to Lincoln University in Pennsylvania followed, and
before Hughes received his degree in 1929, his first two books had been
published.

The Weary Blues (1926) was warmly received. Fine Clothes to the Jew (1927) was
criticized harshly for its title and for its frankness, but Hughes himself felt
it represented a step forward. A few months after graduation Not Without
Laughter (1930), his first prose work, had a cordial reception. In the '30s his
poetry became preoccupied with political militancy; he travelled widely in the
Soviet Union, Haiti, and Japan and served as a newspaper correspondent (1937) in
the Spanish Civil War. He published a collection of short stories, The Ways of
White Folks (1934), and The Big Sea (1940), his autobiography up to the age of
28.

Hughes wrote A Pictorial History of the Negro in America (1956), and the
anthologies The Poetry of the Negro (1949) and The Book of Negro Folklore (1958;
with Arna Bontemps). He also wrote numerous works for the stage, including the
lyrics for Street Scene, an opera with music by Kurt Weill. A posthumous book of
poems, The Panther and the Lash (1967), reflected the black anger and militancy
of the 1960s. Hughes translated the poetry of Federico García Lorca and Gabriela
Mistral. He was also widely known for his comic character Jesse B. Semple,
familiarly called Simple, who appeared in Hughes's columns in the Chicago
Defender and the New York Post and later in book form and on the stage. The
Collected Poems of Langston Hughes, ed. by Arnold Rampersad and David Roessel,
appeared in 1994.

        -- EB

[Links]

There's an essay on Langston Hughes and the 'Harlem Renaissance' at the
Smithsonian, [broken link] http://www.tsa.si.edu/disctheater/sweet/tss03.htm

[On Rivers]

The Nile, the Amazon, the Ganges, the Mississippi, the Congo, the Yangtze, the
Amur, the Don, the Volga, the Tiber, the Tigris and the Euphrates... rivers have
long been the source from which our civilization springs. And they're celebrated
in our culture as well, from Horatius at the Bridge to Steamboat Willie. I leave
you with this quick quiz - identify the poems from which these river quotes are
taken:

1. 'At sixteen you departed,
    You went into far Ku-to-en, by the river of swirling eddies,
    And you have been gone five months.'
2. 'Sweet Thames, run softly, till I end my song!' (two possible answers!)
3. 'Oh, Tiber! Father Tiber!
        To whom the Romans pray,
    A Roman's life, a Roman's arms,
        Take thou in charge this day!'
4. 'From the Gate of Kings the North Wind rides, and past the roaring falls;
    And clear and cold about the tower its loud horn calls.'
5. 'I chatter, chatter, as I flow
        To join the brimming river,
    For men may come and men may go,
        But I go on for ever.. '

Answers the next time I run a river poem (i.e, tomorrow, if I can find one).

25 comments: ( or Leave a comment )

Bulldogsrule25 said...

I am in the eighth grade and my Reading class is reading this poem. I find
this poem very hard to understand.

Crystal Chevalier said...

I am doing a report on Langston Hughes and I think I will put in in.

stasolla rebecca said...

This is a really cool poem!

john.crean said...

the poem is incomplete in your version the final lines are missing

Ashley Black said...

Such a deep poem

Nana Akua said...

this shows how wise he was at 17

Anonymous said...

the afro-american identity of the poet finds affirmation,the nile(african river),mississippi(american river) are brought together-contributing in the identity formation of the poet. langston african ancestry,his past finds mention as he refers to the nile and congo,african river and town.as an african residing in america and being influenced by it,both cultures have contributed to his identity formation.
New orleans,as an american town known for its slavery, is alluded to,as he refers to historical moment of abraham lincon going to new orleans after civil war.the poets voice is not that of a single person,but of collective afro-american experience of all such people,thus "growing deep".

Ideas de negocios said...

Thanks for taking the time to discuss this, but I am firmly convinced of this and love to learn more about the subject. If possible, acquire knowledge, would you update your blog with more information? It is very helpful to me

Anonymous said...

They can also offer a decoratiνе element to the room.
ѕo thаt the fan doеs not bеcome sο loose thаt it mіght fall.
Whatеѵеr your lifеѕtyle, you're sure to find the right lighting to complement it.

Here is my web page outdoor ceiling fans with lights and remote

Anonymous said...

This design is incredible! You definitely know how to keep a reader entertained.
Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well,
almost...HaHa!) Great job. I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that,
how you presented it. Too cool!

My weblog; registry cleaner review

Anonymous said...

It's really a great and helpful piece of information. I am satisfied that you shared this helpful info with us. Please stay us up to date like this. Thank you for sharing.

my site ... registry cleaner

Anonymous said...

Doberman puppies will not only work for food, they will
work for favourite toys. Eliminating outside can be frightening
at first, because that is when a dog is at his most vulnerable.
That puppy training will be the subject of future articles.
Our dog has been praised many times, especially on his walks.
You should be able to get two fingers between your puppy's neck and the collar.

Take a look at my page - miniature english

Anonymous said...

My sis informed me about your site and the way great it is.
She’s proper, I'm actually impressed with the writing and slick design. It appears to me you’re just scratching the floor in terms of what you possibly can accomplish, but you’re off to an incredible start!

my homepage: having trouble getting pregnant the third time

Anonymous said...

Τhe other day, while I was аt work, my sіster
stolе my applе ipad аnd teѕted
to see if іt can survіvе a 25 foot droр, juѕt so she cаn be a уоutube ѕensatiоn.

My iРaԁ is nοw brokеn аnd shе haѕ 83 vіews.
I know thiѕ iѕ comрletеlу off toρic
but I had to share it ωith someone!

My ωeb pаge dragon tattoos

Anonymous said...

Waу cοοl! Some extremely ѵalid points!
I apрrеciate you ωritіng thіѕ write-uр and
the rеst оf the sіte іs also reаlly goοd.



my site 3d animal tattoos []

Anonymous said...

Good day! Do you know if they make any plugins
to safeguard against hackers? I'm kinda paranoid about losing everything I've worked hard on. Any recommendations?


Have a look at my page :: evansville roofing - ,

Unknown said...

"Made in Catalunya giant" was met with fierce resistance from the very first minute of Ajax. However, gradually troops have occupied Luis Enrique M88:http://www.m88no.com/Main/Home.aspx?affiliateId=99156
ball and the result came after 36 minutes when Marc Bartra with a great effort from the right was hanging ball into the penalty area favorable to Lionel Messi turned on high Headed opener for Barca.
Not only has the advantage of scoring,Linda ikeji
M88 Spanish team also benefited when Joel Veltman troops Ajax have received 2nd yellow card after 71 minutes did not tackle the ball to Messi.
Just 5 minutes after being played over the M88,138 bet |
bodog88 |
188bet |
dafabet |
fun88 |
166bet |
m88 |
"Blaugrana" scored doubling. Messi is still up the situation with a combination of two ultra-nice and ate the Substitute striker Pedro before launching a shot accurately reach to put themselves up 2-0 Barca.

Anonymous said...

all of which served to make me salute, this site is full of helpful information and news that, hopefully with minimalist bedroom design | how to make home | saloon car the frequently updated to make this website more useful lagi..thx

Kawasanbet said...

Jika Anda ingin bermain dan memiliki kesempatan bermain slot Jokerwin123 anda harus mendaftar dan membuat akun di fredericksburgchurchofchrist untuk bermain.


James said...
This comment has been removed by the author.

Post a Comment