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This short poem about dreams is one of the most influential poems of the 20th century.
Inspired by blues and jazz music, Montage, which Hughes intended to be read as a single long poem, explores the lives and consciousness of the black community in Harlem, and the continuous experience of racial injustice within this community.
"Harlem" (also known as "A Dream Deferred") [2] is a poem by Langston Hughes. These eleven lines ask, "What happens to a dream deferred?", providing reference to the African-American experience. It was published as part of a longer volume-length poem suite in 1951 called Montage of a Dream Deferred , but is often excerpted from the larger work.
A poet, novelist, fiction writer, and playwright, Langston Hughes is known for his insightful, colorful portrayals of black life in America from the twenties through the sixties and was important in shaping the artistic contributions of the Harlem Renaissance.
Sep 24, 2019 · “Harlem” is the first of six poems in the final section, “Lenox Avenue Mural,” after the main north-south thoroughfare that runs through upper Manhattan. By reading “Harlem” back into Montage of a Dream Deferred, we can appreciate the full measure and range of its possible meanings.
The poem “Harlem” shows the harm that is caused when one’s dream of racial equality is delayed continuously. The poem, in the end, states that society must and will reckon with the dream of blacks. Langston Hughes is one of the most imminent and well-known poets of the Harlem Renaissance.
Jan 15, 2016 · Also commonly known as ‘Harlem,’ ‘Montage of a Dream Deferred’ is a book-length poem that speaks about the lives of Harlem residents who are not experiencing the “American Dream,” but instead are having their dreams deferred.
Langston Hughes first published his poem “Harlem” in 1951, as part of a book-length poetic sequence titled Montage of a Dream Deferred. As he outlines in his introduction to that book, Hughes sought to evoke “the riffs, runs, breaks, and distortions of the music of a community in transition.”
‘Harlem’ is a short poem by Langston Hughes (1901-67). Hughes was a key figure in the Harlem Renaissance in New York in the 1920s. Over the course of a varied career he was a novelist, playwright, social activist, and journalist, but it is for his poetry that Hughes is now best-remembered.
Harlem / Langston Hughes / What happens to a dream deferred? / Does it dry up / like a raisin in the sun? / Or fester like a sore— / And then run? / Does it stink like rotten meat.
