Langston Hughes the Negro Speaks of Rivers

In the poem The Negro Speaks of Rivers, Hughes tells a story of the black man’s evolution to America. The poem illustrates racial pride and dignity. Hughes uses symbolism, free verse, and tone to create a clear picture of in the poem The Negro Speaks of Rivers Hughes uses the use of symbolism to convey the story of his people.

The poem must be critically analyzed to fully understand the essence of Hughes writing. The use of the “I” throughout the poem refers to the black people as a hole, not as an individual person. The “rivers” are used as a metaphor for Hughes illustrates the poem to be direct and comprehensible. He is now a black man who has experienced the pain of slavery and racism, and his soul now has the trademark of these experiences.

The “muddy bosom” is refereed to as a black mother which he rests secure forever. The poem traces the movement of black life from the Euphrates and Nile Rivers in Africa to the Mississippi. The Euphrates symbolizes the original center of human civilization. At the end of the poem Hughes writes, “My soul has grown deep like the rivers”, suggest the understanding beyond the