Picture yourself in the Harlem Renaissance, a cultural revolution brimming with innovation, vivacity, and artistry that has left an enduring mark on history. One figure stands out amidst the jazz-infused streets, painting vibrant tales through his poetry and social activism, that man is Langston Hughes. Not just an emblem of the era, but a beacon of hope, Hughes' words continue to resonate, epitomizing the struggle, resilience, and unyielding spirit of African-American communities. His genius lives on in his remarkable poetic verses, and our task today? Diving into the rich tapestry of “Poetic Langston Hughes Quotes” that span from struggle to celebration, dreams to despair, and joy to sorrow.
There's a magnetic allure in Langston Hughes' words, captivating audiences from all walks of life, transcending cultural barriers, and time. The way his poetry weaved stories is captivating, much like his own personal journey. Legend has it that a young Hughes, just eighteen, penned his iconic poem ‘The Negro Speaks of Rivers‘ on the back of an envelope while crossing the Mississippi River. This compelling blend of personal experience and art birthed what would become an enduring voice for social justice. As we explore these remarkable “Langston Hughes Quotes”, we'll discover layers of emotion, honesty, and evocative imagery that will stay with us for a lifetime. The words of Langston Hughes don't merely tell a story, they invite us into a world both hauntingly familiar and profoundly insightful.
Dream, Hope, and Resilience
1. “Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly.”
2. “What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?”
3. “I have discovered in life that there are ways of getting almost anywhere you want to go, if you really want to go.”
4. “I will not take ‘but' for an answer.”
5. “An artist must be free to choose what he does, certainly, but he must also never be afraid to do what he might choose.”
6. “Like a welcome summer rain, humor may suddenly cleanse and cool the earth, the air and you.”
7. “I swear to the Lord, I still can't see, why Democracy means, everybody but me.”
8. “The only way to get a thing done is to start to do it, then keep on doing it, and finally you'll finish it.”
9. “I look at my own body With eyes no longer blind And I see that my own hands can make The world that's in my mind.”
10. “Negroes – Sweet and docile, Meek, humble and kind: Beware the day – They change their mind.”
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On Art and Life
- “I liked my books and clouds and sunsets.”
- “Life is for the living. Death is for the dead. Let life be like music. And death a note unsaid.”
- “Folks, I'm telling you, birthing is hard and dying is mean- so get yourself a little loving in between.”
- “I am so tired of waiting, Aren't you, For the world to become good and beautiful and kind?”
- “Humor is laughing at what you haven't got when you ought to have it.”
- “I stuck my head out the window this morning and spring kissed me bang in the face.”
- “It's such a Bore Being always Poor.”
- “Looks like what drives me crazy has no effect on you – But I'm gonna keep on at it till it drives you crazy, too.”
- “Good morning, daddy! Ain't you heard The boogie-woogie rumble Of a dream deferred?”
- “My soul has grown deep like the rivers.”
On Love and Human Nature
- “I loved my friend. He went away from me. There's nothing more to say.”
- “I loved my friend He went away from me There's nothing more to say The poem ends, Soft as it began- I loved my friend.”
- “I am so tired of waiting. Aren't you, for the world to become good and beautiful and kind?”
- “When peoples care for you and cry for you, they can straighten out your soul.”
- “Let the rain kiss you. Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. Let the rain sing you a lullaby.”
- “I have been scarred and battered. My hopes the wind done scattered.”
- “A dream is a microscope through which we look at the hidden occurrences in our soul.”
- “Out of love, No regrets- Though the goodness Be wasted forever.”
- “You've taken my blues and gone – You sing 'em on Broadway And you sing 'em in Hollywood Bowl, And you mixed 'em up with symphonies And you fixed 'em So they don't sound like me.”
- “Like a joy on the heart of a sorrow, The sunset hangs on a cloud.”
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On Struggle and Freedom
- “I have been in sorrow's kitchen and licked out all the pots. Then I have stood on the peaky mountain wrapped in rainbows, with a harp and a sword in my hands.”
- “Justice That justice is a blind goddess Is a thing to which we black are wise: Her bandage hides two festering sores That once perhaps were eyes.”
- “This is the mountain standing in the way of any true Negro art in America — this urge within the race toward whiteness, the desire to pour racial individuality into the mold of American standardization, and to be as little Negro and as much American as possible.”
- “To some people, Love is given, To others, Only Heaven.”
- “I tire so of hearing people say, Let things take their course. Tomorrow is another day. I do not need my freedom when I'm dead. I cannot live on tomorrow's bread.”
- “Let America be America again. Let it be the dream it used to be.”
- “We younger Negro artists who create now intend to express our individual dark-skinned selves without fear or shame.”
- “Well, I like to eat, sleep, drink, and be in love. I like to work, read, learn, and understand life.”
- “The night is beautiful, So the faces of my people. The stars are beautiful, So the eyes of my people.”
- “I do not need my freedom when I'm dead.”
On Truth and Authenticity
- “When you turn the corner And you run into yourself Then you know that you have turned All the corners that are left.”
- “I did not believe political directives could be successfully applied to creative writing . . . not to poetry or fiction, which to be valid had to express as truthfully as possible the individual emotions and reactions of the writer.”
- “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 am a Negro: Black as the night is black, Black like the depths of my Africa.”
- “Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps, Love is a madness. If so, It's my one sane refuge.”
- “I am so tired of waiting, Aren't you, For the world to become good And beautiful and kind.”
- “I too sing America. I am the darker brother. They send me to eat in the kitchen When company comes, But I laugh, And eat well, And grow strong.”
- “Life for me ain't been no crystal stair. It's had tacks in it, and splinters, and boards torn up, and places with no carpet on the floor – bare.”
- “I find it so hard to be happy, and then again it is so easy. I declare that life is just full of many more shadows than sun.”
- “The calm, Cool face of the river Asked me for a kiss.”
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