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I-- <br />C <br />tt <br />0 <br />0 <br />0 <br />5 <br />c <br />0 <br />cc <br />0 <br />a <br />ji <br />`o <br />L <br />c <br />m <br />J <br />It <br />THE LANGUAGE <br />• <br />Langston Hughes, a hero of the Harlem Renaissance, was an <br />important American writer and thinker. His character in the play <br />quoted an excerpt from one of his poems, "I, Too ". Hughes wrote <br />this poem in 1922 after he was denied passage on a ship because of <br />his skin color. "I, too" is a reflection on Walt Whitman's famous poem <br />"I Hear America Singing" published in 1900. Read the two poems <br />below and use the questions that follow for a class discussion. <br />I Hear America Singing <br />by Walt Whitman <br />I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear: <br />Those of mechanics — each one singing his, as it should be, <br />blithe and strong; <br />The carpenter singing his, as he measures his plank or <br />beam, <br />The mason singing his, as he makes ready for work, or <br />leaves off work; <br />The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat — the <br />deckhand singing on the steamboat deck; <br />The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench — the hatter <br />singing as he <br />stands; <br />The wood cutter's song — the ploughboy's on his way in the <br />morning, or at noon intermission, or at sundown; <br />The delicious singing of the mother — or of the young wife <br />at work — or of the girl sewing or washing — <br />Each singing what belongs to him or her and to none else; <br />The day what belongs to the day — at night, the party of <br />young fellows, robust, friendly, <br />Singing, with open mouths, their strong melodious songs. <br />I, Too <br />by Langston Hughes <br />I, too, sing America <br />I am the darker brother. <br />They send me to eat in the kitchen <br />When company comes, <br />But I laugh, <br />And eat well, <br />And grow strong. <br />Tomorrow, <br />I'll sit at the table <br />When company comes. <br />Nobody']] dare <br />Say to me, <br />"Eat in the kitchen," <br />Then. <br />Besides, <br />They'll see how beautiful I am <br />And be ashamed — <br />I, too, am America. <br />THINK ABOUT IT! <br />,% <br />Discussion Questions: <br />1. What the general mood of Walt <br />Whitman's poem? <br />2. What are some feelings that <br />Hughes is expressing in his <br />poem? <br />3. When is "tomorrow" in line 8 of <br />"I, Too "? <br />4. What clues can you find in <br />"I Hear America Singing" that <br />illustrate it was written over 100 <br />years ago? <br />5. Who is singing in America now? <br />DO IT! <br />Write your own poem that <br />describes modern America. <br />Model it after one of the two <br />poems to the left. <br />0 <br />0 <br />c <br />Cn <br />M <br />m <br />o <br />D <br />0 <br />