I, Too

BY LANGSTON HUGHES
Langston Hughes

 James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901[1] – May 22, 1967) was an
American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin,
Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the literary art form called jazz poetry,
Hughes is best known as a leader of the Harlem Renaissance. He famously wrote
about the period that "the Negro was in vogue", which was later paraphrased as
"when Harlem was in vogue.”

 Growing up in a series of Midwestern towns, Hughes became a prolific writer at an

early age. He moved to New York City as a young man, where he made his career.
He graduated from high school in Cleveland, Ohio, and soon began studies at
Columbia University in New York City. Although he dropped out, he gained notice
from New York publishers, first in The Crisis magazine, and then from book
publishers and became known in the creative community in Harlem. He eventually
graduated from Lincoln University. In addition to poetry, Hughes wrote plays, and
short stories. He also published several non-fiction works. From 1942 to 1962, as the
civil rights movement was gaining power, he wrote an in-depth weekly column in a
leading black newspaper, The Chicago Defender.
 Throughout many of Langston Hughes' poetry, there seems to be
a very strong theme of racism. Poems such as "Ballad of the
Landlord", "I, Too", and "Dinner Guest: Me" are some good
examples of that theme. The "Ballad of the Landlord" addresses
the issue of prejudice in the sense of race as well as class.
 THE ESSENTIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF LANGSTON HUGHES’
LITERARY WORK
 The following are the essential characteristics of Hughes’ work.
Since he has written a larger body of poetry than prose work, the
characteristics are mainly based on his poetic works.
 THE USE OF SIMPLE AND FAMILIAR LANGUAGE
 The main goal of Hughes was to spread his literary work, and
particularly his poetic work, to the people belonging to any race.
The black people are usually the mouthpiece of his works.
Therefore, Hughes employed simple and unsophisticated
language in his work. In addition to this, he uses free, unusual
verse form in poetry. For example, the poem “I, Too, Sing
America” is the best example in which the speaker expresses his
dream.
 The literary works of Langston Hughes appear to be concerned in
order to overcome and fight the factual and institutional slavery.
In the Afro-American Movement of Harlem, Langston Hughes is
among the frontline activists.
 VARIOUS THEMES IN LANGSTON HUGHES’ WORKS
 The work of Langston has been greatly influenced by the life of
Black Americans. In the works of Hughes, Andrew identified
almost 16 themes. These themes include parental rejection,
racism, the pride of blacks, the history of deportation, the dignity
of blacks, the anger, the protest, the fight of equality, the oral
tradition of Africa, social injustice, jazz, and the blues, suffering,
and race.
I,TOO
What is the purpose of the poem
I, too?
 I, Too is a short, free verse poem that focuses on African
American identity within the dominant white culture of the USA. It
sums up the history of oppression of black people by means of
slavery, denial of rights and inequality.
Who is speaking in the poem I
too?
 The speaker of “I, Too” is a black man. In line 2, he refers to
himself as the “darker brother.” Taken literally, this suggests that
he is part of a family—a family that includes people who are not
as dark as he is. In other words, the family is mixed: it has both
white and black members. However, the white members of the
family are ashamed of their “darker brother”: when other people
—“company”—come over, they force the speaker to eat by
himself in the kitchen.
“I, Too” portrays American racism as experienced
by a black man. In the poem, white people deny
the speaker a literal and metaphorical seat at
the table. However, the speaker asserts that he
is just as much as part of America as are white
people, and that soon the rest of the country will
be forced to acknowledge the beauty and
strength of black people.
Themes
Racism and American identity
 “I, Too” is a cry of protest against American racism. Its speaker, a
black man, laments the way that he is excluded from American
society—even though he is a key part of it. But, the speaker
argues, black people have persevered—and will persevere—
through the injustices of racism and segregation by developing a
vibrant, beautiful, and independent cultural tradition, a cultural
tradition so powerful that it will eventually compel white society
to recognize black contributions to American life and history.

 Throughout the poem, the speaker insists that he is authentically

American and that his community has made important
contributions to American life.
Symbols:
 kitchen
The “kitchen” broadly symbolizes the unequal treatment faced by black
Americans. In lines 3-4, the speaker notes that he is sent “to eat in the
kitchen / When company comes.” On the one hand, this can be taken
literally. Black people were often employed as domestic workers for
white families—tasked with things like preparing food and caring for
children. Despite relying on such workers, white families would push
them into the background, refusing to treat them as equal human beings
even as they benefited from their labor.

 The kitchen is thus a key part of the poem’s extended metaphor. In a

poem that describes American racism, the “kitchen” symbolizes one of
its most perverse expressions: segregation. Segregation meant the black
people and white people had to stay separate, in everything from where
they lived to what water fountains they used. Yet white families still
relied on black labor—bringing black workers into their homes yet
refusing to treat them as equal human beings or even acknowledge their
presence socially. Sending the speaker to the kitchen represents white
society's hypocritical treatment of him, its desire to benefit from his
labor without acknowledging his humanity.
Symbol Company

 In "I, too," "company" symbolizes white society. “Company” literally means “guests”
or “visitors.” The white members of the American family seem to be ashamed of
their “darker brother”: they don’t want to acknowledge their relationship to a black
person in front of other people. This suggests that the white members of the family
are hypocrites. They only hide the “darker brother” when other people are around.

 This symbol is key to the poem because it shows that American racism and
segregation are rooted in shame and denial on the part of white people. White
people refuse to acknowledge that they are already part of an American family that
includes black people; that they already share the same house (metaphorically,
within the broader melting pot of American society, and often literally in the sense of
black people employed as domestic workers for white families). The poem implies
that white people would rather keep up the appearance of superiority rather than
acknowledge the equality and beauty of black people.
Symbol Table

 In "I, too," the table symbolizes respect, equality, and opportunity. In lines 8-
9, the speaker makes a prediction about the future. Even though now he
gets sent to the “kitchen / When company comes,” some day in the future
he'll "be at the table.” By the time the reader gets to this point in the poem,
there is already a rich set of associations to draw on: the kitchen, for
instance, represents segregation, and the whole situation is an extended
metaphor for American racism.

 The “table” adds another important layer to this extended metaphor. It

symbolizes power and participation, the opportunity to engage meaningfully
in American democracy—as an equal player, a respected contributor. When
the speaker comes to the table “tomorrow,” he will no longer be a second
class citizen, but finally recognized as the full member of American society
that he is.
“I, Too” Poetic Devices &
Figurative Language
 End-Stopped Line
 Although “I, Too” uses a lot of short, set up lines, the
speaker also often employs end-stops. Though the two
devices do different things, they work together to
build the poem's critique of American racism. While
the poem’s enjambments create suspense and
surprise—raising questions about racism—its end-
stops also may convey the speaker's confidence that
racism will end.
 Something similar happens in the end-stop that appears in line 10, after two
short lines:

 Tomorrow,
 I’ll be at the table
 When company comes.

 The “table” is a symbol for participating in American life. In other words, the
speaker is insisting that a day will come when he is not excluded from American
politics, treated as a second class citizen. The end-stop underscores the
speaker’s confidence that racism will eventually lose its power. Thus, the poem’s
end-stops underscore the speaker’s powerful sense of certainty, his firm belief
that racism will not last forever
Allusion (an expression designed to call
something into mind without mentioning it
explicitly)
 Take a look at the first line of the poem:
I, too, sing America.
 The line is an allusion to Walt Whitman’s poem “I Hear America
Singing.” In that poem, Whitman describes a wide range of
people “singing”—and argues that their voices join together to
create a unified American song. But he doesn’t include black
people in his vision of America. The speaker objects to Whitman’s
poem: the speaker believes that black people are a key part of
the American song. The end-stop at the end of line 1 conveys the
force of the speaker’s conviction, the power of his belief that he,
too, is an important part of American history and culture. It
suggests that he has no doubts on the issue, and that he will not
accept any disagreement
Extended metaphor

 This family drama is more accurately thought of as an extended metaphor. It

describes racism and segregation in America. The speaker is thus not just a
single black person: he more broadly represents black people’s place in
American culture. As the speaker describes his experiences, he also describes
the way that black people's contributions to American history and culture have
been ignored. The speaker has made significant contributions to American life;
he is part of the American family. But white people refuse to acknowledge his
contributions. They separate themselves from him, forcing him into the
background.

 The speaker's resilience also suggests the strength and perseverance of black
communities. Although his contributions are ignored and although he is abused
by white people, the speaker remains confident in his own beauty—and the
beauty of the culture he represents. And he is confident that if it is powerful
enough, this beauty will eventually force white people to recognize black
people’s contribution to American culture and history.
Form
 “I, Too” is not a formal poem. It doesn’t follow the rules of a fixed
form. And it doesn’t have a set meter or rhyme scheme. Instead,
it is written in five stanzas consisting of one to seven lines. It is a
free verse poem, with the short lines and strong enjambments
(continuation of a sentence or phrase from one line to another)
that free verse poets often employ.
 The speaker has a strong reason to refuse poetry’s traditional
forms. As one of the leaders of the Harlem Renaissance,
Langston Hughes was determined to find a literary voice for black
suffering, resistance, and resilience. “I, Too” is about the dignity
of black life in America. The speaker suggests that black people
(and black cultural traditions) are beautiful and worthwhile on
their own terms. the speaker seeks to create a way of writing
about black culture that is specific to black life, and that isn’t
confined by white history

 .
Rhyme Scheme

 “I, Too” does not have a rhyme scheme. In fact, the poem does not rhyme at all.
One might understand this resistance to rhyme as a reaction to white, European
poetic traditions—which, since the Middle Ages, have put a lot of emphasis on
rhyme. In his refusal of rhyme, the speaker is signaling his interest in developing
an independent, black tradition.

 So, the speaker’s refusal to use rhyme has two dimensions. On the one hand, it
signals the speaker’s resistance to white poetic tradition. On the other, it marks
the speaker’s interest in being as straightforward and direct as possible as he
articulates his powerful protest against American racism.

 “
Setting

 “I, Too” has two settings, a literal one and a metaphorical one.

 Most obviously, it’s literally set in a house where a family lives. The speaker is
part of that family: in line 2, he calls himself its “darker brother.” In other
words, the family is mixed, with both white and black members. But the
speaker is mistreated by his white family members. The house is segregated:
the speaker is forced to stay in the kitchen while the other members of the
family entertain guests.

 That said, it's best not to think of the poem so literally. This house, with its
black and white family and its segregated spaces, is really part of an extended
metaphor that describes American history and culture. The house is a
metaphor for America itself. The events of the poem resonate with the
complicated (and ongoing) history of racial injustice. As such, the setting of the
poem could also be considered to be America as a whole.
Answer the following questions:

 Explain the extended metaphor in the poem.

 What is the setting in the poem?
 Who is the speaker in ‘I ,Too’?
 Why did the poet use the free verse form?
 The speaker’s refusal to use rhyme scheme has two dimensions.
Elaborate.
 Explain the allusion used in the poem.
 Mention in details the symbols used in the poem.