Lewis

=Robert Frost (1874-1963)= == = =

Biography
Robert Frost was born in 1874 in California, but identified himself more with New England, where he moved to after his father's death when he was 11. He married his high school sweetheart, Elinor White, and began a family with her. After moving to England and receiving favorable reviews on his poetry, Frost returned with his family to New Hampshire to live on a farm and continue writing. Frost suffered tragedy in his family life when his son committed suicide and his daughter had a mental breakdown; in fact, only 2 out of his 6 children outlived him. Frost's personal life is seen in many of his poems; the New England terrain and climate is often used as the setting for his poetry, and many of his poems' themes reflect the personal tragedies Frost had to endure.

Fire and Ice
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Some say the world will end in fire, Some say in ice. From what I’ve tasted of desire I hold with those who favor fire. But if it had to perish twice, I think I know enough of hate To say that for destruction ice Is also great And would suffice.

On a literal level, “Fire and Ice” is a poem about the destruction of the world. Two prevailing theories on how the world will end are presented. The first, that “the world will end in fire,” reflects the view that the earth will be ignited and all living things will burn to death. The second theory, that it will end “in ice,” is the idea that the earth will encounter another ice age and all living things will freeze. The ambiguity exists in whether Frost is talking about the world ending in literal fire or ice, or if he is using these elements to represent something more. By reading more deeply into the poem, the reader can see that these elements are likely more symbolically meaningful. He writes “From what I’ve tasted of desire I hold with those who favor fire,” showing that the fire he is talking about is a symbol of desire. This fire is the raw passion that can cause people to rashly act on impulses, and the idea that this fire could destroy the world is seen in Billy Joel’s song “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” which details how this type of passion has been around “since the world’s been turning” and will exist even once we are gone. The ice that Frost discusses also is not literal; the ice represents the “hate” mentioned in the 6th line. This type of icy hate could also destroy the world by chilling everyone’s hearts and destroying any meaningful interactions. The “world” in Frost’s poem is likely representative of a human relationship, which can be destroyed by too much passion (“fire”) or cold hate (“ice”). The real meaning of the poem lies in the fact that these two opposite forces can be equally destructive if they exist on their own.

Desert Places
= = Snow falling and night falling fast, oh, fast In a field I looked into going past, And the ground almost covered smooth in snow, But a few weeds and stubble showing last.

The woods around it have it- it is theirs. All animals are smothered in their lairs. I am too absent-spirited to count; The loneliness includes me unawares.

And lonely as it is, that loneliness Will be more lonely ere it will be less- A blanker whiteness of benighted snow With no expression, nothing to express.

They cannot scare me with their empty spaces Between stars- on stars where no human race is. I have it in me so much nearer home To scare myself with my own desert places.

Robert Frost’s “Desert Places” is literally about a narrator observing the landscape around him. The narrator looks into a field covered in snow, then to the woods, and eventually up into the sky, and he notes how lonely all of nature seems to him at that time. The confusion of the poem rests in identifying what the speaker’s “own desert places” are and recognizing that they may not be tangible places that one could see. The narrator sees all of the deserted places in nature, covered in snow, that have no visible identifying features. He sees this emptiness and observes it “Will be more lonely ere it will be less,” showing that he believes soon even the “few weeds and stubble” that are left will be covered up by snow, thereby leaving absolutely nothing. This also is a reflection on the narrator’s own desert places which he believe will only become more lonely as time progresses. Instead of attributing this loneliness just to nature, the narrator notes “The loneliness includes me unawares,” showing that he is a part of the loneliness and that what he sees in nature is a reflection of what he feels inside himself. What he sees around him “cannot scare (him) with their empty spaces,” because he feels the loneliness “so much nearer home.” These lines show that the speaker is not intimidated by the abandonment he sees around him, because he has a more profound emptiness inside himself. He is more frightened of the empty places he has within himself than he is of the ones he sees around him in nature. The sentiments of the narrator are likely a reflection on Frost’s own sense of loneliness, as his well-known depression and losses of loved ones throughout his life left him with his own sense of abandonment and his own desert places within himself.

=Claude McKay (1889-1948)= === Biography===

Claude McKay was born in Sunny Ville Jamaica in 1889. He moved to Kingston, Jamaica in 1909 where he published his first two books of poetry, //Songs of Jamaica// and //Constab Ballads//. After the publication of these books in 1912, McKay earned enough money to move to the United States. He married Eulalie Imelda Lewars, but they soon divorced after having a daughter. McKay was a working-class man who held various jobs while he continued to write. He held radical political beliefs, as he thought that racism and capitalism were inseparable. Despite openly criticizing leading black intellectuals and leacing Harlem just when the Renaissance was beginning, McKay wrote //Harlem Shadows// in 1922, which is widely believed to be the book that started the Harlem Renaissance.

Although she feeds me bread of bitterness,
And sinks into my throat her tiger’s tooth, Stealing my breath of life, I will confess I love this cultured hell that tests my youth! Her vigor flows like tides into my blood, Giving me strength erect against her hate. Her bigness sweeps my being like a flood, Yet as a rebel fronts a king in state, I stand within her walls with not a shred Of terror, malice, not a word of jeer. Darkly I gaze into the days ahead, And see her might and granite wonders there, Beneath the touch of Time’s unerring hand, Like priceless treasures sinking in the sand.

Claude McKay’s poem “America” is a unique poem that shows the conflicting feelings about America that a black American of his time period may have had. To begin, McKay writes “Although she feeds me bread of bitterness, And sinks into my throat her tiger’s tooth, Stealing my breath of life.” In these lines, the narrator speaks of how unjustly he is treated by America. The use of these vibrant images and the personification of America in these lines serve to paint a picture for the reader of how maliciously the narrator has been treated by America. This treatment of black Americans was, unfortunately, very typical of the time period. The tone of this poem is not one of resentment, however, as the narrator speaks of how the vindictive nature of America has actually inspired him to rise above all the racism and gives him “strength erect against her hate.” He does not have “terror, malice, not a word of jeer,” but rather expresses his “love (for) this cultured hell.” He believes that all the hatred and injustice he has experienced have only inspired him and he credits the “cultured hell” of America for this inspiration. The true tone of the poem is one of optimism; the speaker believes that all the hate he has experienced has only made him stronger, and he has faith that there are “might and granite wonders” for him in the future. The one regret the narrator seems to have in the poem is that these wonders are “Beneath the touch of Time’s unerring hand, Like priceless treasures sinking in the sand.” In these lines, the narrator relents that, although these treasures are there, they are somewhat diminished by time. He expresses the need for urgency by wishing to reach these treasures before they have completely sunken into the ground due to wasted time. He sees an end to this inequality, but seems unsure whether it will come in time.

=Langston Hughes (1902-1967)= ==

Biography
Langston Hughes was born in Joplin, Missouri in 1902, but spent most of his childhood living with his grandmother in Lawrence, Kansas. His mother was sympathetic to Hughes's writing ambitions, while his businessman father was not. Hughes graduated from high school but left college after only one year. Hughes's writings were first published only in anthologies, but he soon penned his own book of poetry, //The Weary Blues//, in 1926. The Great Depression ended much of the black American literary movement, but Hughes was already publicly known. He began to get involved in politics, becoming particularly fascinated with the American Communist Party. Because of this, he was questioned by the FBI as a security risk, which made him begin to write patriotic poetry to restore his reputation. He continued to publish books of poetry up until close to his death. Langston Hughes is widely viewed as one of the most popular and varied writer of the Harlem Renaissance.

Democracy will not come Today, this year Nor ever Through compromise and fear.media type="youtube" key="7hQpnS0Qb84" height="308" width="377" align="right"

I have as much right As the other fellow has To stand On my two feet And own the land.

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.

Freedom Is a strong seed Planted In a great need. I live here, too. I want freedom Just as you.

Langston Hughes’s poem “Democracy” is a commentary on the social situation in America at the time. This poem is written in a very straightforward manner so that the literal meaning of Hughes’s words is also the true meaning of his poem and no real ambiguities exist. The United States was established as a democratic union based on principles of liberty, freedom, and equality, yet none of these are enjoyed by the black Americans of Hughes’s time. Although slavery had been abolished for several decades, black Americans were not treated as equals and did not enjoy the same privileges as white Americans. Hughes recognizes this and believes that he, along with other black Americans, has “as much right As the other fellow has To stand on (his) two feet.” There is no legitimate reason for black Americans to not enjoy all the same rights as white Americans. Hughes knows that this problem will not correct itself, as he notes that true democracy “will not come... ever Through compromise and fear.” He sees the need to stop compromising on basic human rights and to eradicate the fear people have of combatting the status quo. In this poem, Hughes is really presenting a call to action to encourage others to stand with him against the injustices of the time and to fight for true democracy. He espouses the need to achieve this freedom now, since he and others “cannot live on tomorrow’s bread.” In the Family Guy video clip, a satire is presented on the term “democracy” and how many people believe that simply using the term will solve all the existing problems. In reality, conflicts will not automatically resolve themselves simply by saying “Democracy just kicked in;” people need to actively search for solutions and not simply say “//Let things take their course//,” as Hughes points out in this poem.

Note on Commercial Theatre
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. Yep, you done took my blues and gone.

You also took my spirituals and gone. You put me in //Macbeth// and //Carmen Jones// And all kinds of //Swing Mikados// And in everything but what’s about me- But someday somebody’ll Stand up and talk about me, And write about me- Black and beautiful- And sing about me, And put on plays about me!

I reckon it’ll be Me myself! Yes, it’ll be me.

In “Note on Commercial Theatre,” Langston Hughes once again uses a fairly straightforward style to express the meaning of his poem. The ambiguity of this poem rests in Hughes’s use of “my” and “me” in relation to the blues and spirituals that have been taken. One can infer that Hughes is not literally talking about his own blues and spirituals, because he likely did not write the blues that were sung on Broadway and in the Hollywood Bowl or star in the plays that are mentioned. The narrator in the poem is not talking about what belongs only to him, but rather what belongs to the black Americans as a whole. By using “my” and “me,” he is espousing a sense of community and giving the black Americans a common identity that they can be proud of. This poem discusses how the black Americans made huge contributions to American culture and how these contributions were stolen from them. The tone toward the beginning of the poem is one of frustration as Hughes writes “Yep, you done took my blues and gone. You also took my spirituals and gone.” The narrator is angry that these things were stolen, but also acknowledges that they were changed “So they don’t sound like me.” The tone then becomes optimistic and hopeful as the narrator says “Someday sombody’ll Stand up and talk about me.” These lines show that the narrator believes that there will soon be an end to the inequality of the times and that people will someday be proud of the accomplishments of the black Americans. He also takes personal responsibility by saying “I reckon it’ll be Me myself!” These lines show how the narrator believes the black Americans need to take initiative to stand up and be proud of their cultural achievements rather than sit back and let the white Americans take credit for them. This poem celebrates all that the black Americans have accomplished culturally and shows the need for them to take pride in these feats.