Juan Carlos De La Rosa Introduction to Literature 5 December 2001 Temporary Escape Through The Blues James Mercer Langston Hughes was a poet of the Harlem Renaissance, an era of unparalleled excellence in African-American art and literature in the 1920's. Hughes wrote of racial injustice, social struggle, and interracial relations in poetry that had its roots in jazz and the blues. He became greatly known and recognized for the poem "The Weary Blues." Hughes referred to this work as his lucky poem because it was instrumental in launching his literary career. Despite the criticism he received from other poets and African-Americans, Hughes developed his original style with intense feeling for the neighborhoods of Harlem. Hughes captured the mood, the feel, and the spirit of the blues in his writing, mostly from his experiences and feelings concerning the so-called American Dream. Donald C. Dickson states that perhaps Hughes's own unhappiness and the infectious rhythms he heard on Seventh Street lead to the "The Weary Blues" (20). This poem signifies the common African-American blues culture, which was a method of escape from the harsh realities of society. Although the poem is not bitter, it displays the loneliness, despair, and frustration of being seduced by the false advertisement of equality. The blues create deep emotions in black Americans; it provides an understanding of the kind of tragic experiences the 1920's brought upon them. The poem begins with a person on the streets of Lenox Avenue who hears the musical sounds of a Negro playing the blues. The first three lines introduce those elements: "Droning a drowsy syncopated tune, / Rocking back and forth to a mellow croon, / I heard a Negro play." According to Arthur P. Davis, the black piano player is trying beneath ". . . the pale dull pallor of an old gas light" to rid his soul of the blues that bedeviled it (246). Hughes writes, "He did a lazy sway . . . / He did a lazy sway . . . / To the tune o' those Weary Blues" (5-7). These three lines express the musician's strong emotion, which can almost be felt by the reader. The sway of his body, the intense striking of the ivory keys, and the loud melodies of the piano appear as a memory in the reader's minds through the strong feel of the weary blues. Invocating the blues, "The Weary Blues" continues on with its sweet sounds. The Negro sings the words "Ain't got nobody in all this world, / Ain't got nobody but ma self" (19, 20). He expresses his frustration with loneliness because of the world's racial injustice and inequality. The useless dwelling on his sorrow is realized: "I's gwine to quit ma frownin' / And put ma troubles on the shelf," (21, 22) but his vast misery is difficult to overcome in a short amount of time. These two lines provide the reader with a respect for the black pianist who attempts to move on with his life. In the middle of the poem, Hughes interjects a traditional verse of the blues, which the black piano player uses as a means of expressing his grief concerning society. He sings, "I got the Weary Blues / and I can't be satisfied" (25, 26). The "Weary Blues" signifies his troubles that cannot be solved. Lines 27 and 28 are reduced by a word in order for the words to have more of an effect in meaning and keep the flow of the poem going. The Negro declares "I ain't happy no mo' / And I wish that I had died" (29, 30). By referring to lines 21 and 22, the reader can conclude that his attempt to leave his sorrow in the past failed. This only caused him to regret not dying when death was near in his lifetime. Throughout the poem, the black piano player swayed to the blues to forget his troubles. He played all night hoping for some peace, but when dawn approached, there was little relief: The stars went out and so did the moon The singer stopped playing and went to bed While the Weary Blues echoed through his head, He slept like a rock or a man that's dead. (32-35) The blues provided and escape from the harsh realities, which were the loneliness, despair, and frustration in the black musician's life. It is not hard to believe that sleep, dancing and singing and wild hilarity are another means of escape. There may be thousands of ways of avoiding the confrontation of sorrows, but they will arise again after time. The black piano player was portrayed as a symbol of the common African-American who is deprived of the luxury of justice and equality in America. For this individual, singing and playing the blues was his way to elude continuous reality. His method of escaping sorrow was only temporary because he would have to deal with grief sooner or later. The evasion only prolonged the misery which dwells in his thoughts day and night. As Davis puts it, "One has to wake up sometime and face the harsh reality of daylight and everyday living" (246). Sources Cited Davis, Arthur P. "Langston Hughes." Poetry Criticism. Ed. Sharon R. Gunton. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 1974. 246-248. Dickson, Donald C. A Bio-bibliography of Langston Hughes. CT: Archon Books, 1972. Hughes, Langston. "The Weary Blues." 5 Sept. 2001. <http://www.poets.org/poems/ poems.cfm?prmID=1476>. |