Langston hughes is "the Poet Laureate of Harlem (new york Black Community)" and the most outstanding representative of African American literature. His novels, poems and literary works are mainly poems, as well as novels and comments. His writing themes are mostly black life and racial issues, which has opened up a realistic road for black literature. His published poems include Sleepy Blues and Beautiful Clothes for Jews.
Black people are a race with a long history. Among the existing races, blacks are the first to leave footprints on the earth. However, in modern history, the land where blacks lived was invaded by colonial rulers. Many black people became slaves and were sold to the United States to do coolies and manual labor, and they were bullied physically and mentally. After the civil war, slavery was abolished in the United States, and blacks were free.
In this poem, "river" is a highly concise image. We can understand it as a symbol of history. Black people's tracing back to the river is a tracing back to their own history and their ancestors and homes.
"I know rivers:/I know rivers as old as the world,/rivers older than the blood flowing in human veins." The "I" in the poem is not a specific black man, but represents the whole black race. In this poem, the poet repeatedly emphasized the black witness of "river" (history), and vividly pointed out that this "river" is "as old as the world" and even older than the river in human body-"blood".
"My soul has become as deep as a river." There is only one line in the second section, which plays a connecting role. The understanding of rivers in the previous section was limited to "understanding". Through this passage, "I" have deeply felt this river with "soul". In other words, the "soul" of black people is profound because it witnessed the "river" (history). The following part is a historical review.
"At dawn, I bathed in the Euphrates River." The Euphrates River is one of the cradles of ancient civilization, which gave birth to splendid ancient civilization.
"I built a small house by the Congo River, and the river gurgled me to sleep. /I looked at the Nile and built a pyramid by the river. " Congo River is the largest river in Africa and Nile River is the longest river in the world. The Nile valley also gave birth to a splendid ancient civilization.
"When Lincoln went to New Orleans,/I heard the singing of the Mississippi River,/I saw its muddy chest/shining golden in the sunset." The Mississippi River is the largest river in North America. When Lincoln was president of the United States, he abolished slavery and liberated American slaves.
The above is the poet's exaggerated review of history. The figure of "I" swept across three continents: Asia, Africa and America. From ancient times to the present, every place has a river that I will never forget.
"I know rivers:/ancient dark rivers." The fourth section is similar to the first section in sentence structure, but the sentence is shorter and the meaning is more concise. The "underground river" can be regarded as a metaphor for black history.
The last section "My soul becomes as deep as a river" is a repetition of the second section, which is intended to strengthen and highlight the theme. Black people have witnessed the history of human development, and the black "soul" contains the accumulation of human civilization and history, so it appears "extensive and profound".
This poem shows black people's pride in their own race. In the era when poets lived, the bad habit of racial discrimination had not been eradicated in America. There is no doubt that poets write such poems on behalf of their own race, which is very infectious.
In addition, we can also feel the poet's faint sadness from this poem. This sadness stems from the long history and deep suffering of black people.