Responding to Poetry

October 9, 2003
Responding to Poetry:
“Theme For English B” by Langston Hughes

1.) In the poem, Langston Hughes describes the piece’s origin; Hughes was given a homework assignment by his college professor for English B. He describes the assignment and his response to it. The work was supposed to be a descriptive poem embodying the author. The work develops from confusing, to specific, to symbolic, to personal, to universal, then back to the addressing the assignment at hand. The poem takes own a natural progression of emotional involvement on behalf of the author.
2.) A main theme presented it the work is racism. The author identifies himself as black and his professor as white. The assignment was to have the work “become you,” and Hughes observes that the paper cannot be black, as he is. The work will start out as Hughes but then become a part of the professor as well when he reads it. So therefore, the poem itself cannot be identified by race as its aut...