The poem
I, too, sing America.
I am the darker brother. They send me to eat in the kitchen When company comes, But I laugh, And eat well, And grow strong.
Tomorrow, I'll be at the table When company comes. Nobody'll dare Say to me, "Eat in the kitchen," Then.
Besides, They'll see how beautiful I am And be ashamed--
I, too, am America.
This is a short free-verse poem spoken by a man who calls himself "the darker brother". He is sent to eat in the kitchen when guests arrive. He does not protest. He laughs, eats well and grows strong.
He predicts a day when he will sit at the table and no one will dare to send him away. The poem turns a household scene into a claim about who belongs to America. Its first line claims a voice in the nation's song. Its last line goes further and claims to be the nation itself.
The poem opens with a single line. The speaker says "I, too, sing America." The word "too" places him beside others who already sing. He does not yet say who those others are.
In the second stanza the speaker calls himself "the darker brother". He says that "They" send him to eat in the kitchen "When company comes". The poem never names who "They" are. He answers this treatment by laughing. He eats well and grows strong.
The third stanza looks ahead to "Tomorrow". On that day the speaker will be "at the table" when company comes. Nobody will dare to tell him to eat in the kitchen. The stanza closes on the one-word line "Then."
The fourth stanza opens with "Besides," and adds one more point. The others will see how beautiful he is. They will be ashamed of how they treated him. The stanza breaks off on a dash.
The last stanza is again a single line. It repeats the opening line with one change. The speaker now says "I, too, am America." The verb "sing" has become "am".
Belonging is the central idea. The first line claims a share in singing America, as others already do. The last line claims more: "I, too, am America." The change from "sing" to "am" moves from taking part in the nation to being part of it. The speaker does not ask for this. He states it as a fact.
Exclusion is shown through a single domestic image. Being sent "to eat in the kitchen" when guests arrive means being kept out of sight. The kitchen belongs to the house, so the speaker is inside the household but hidden. The "table" in line 9 stands for full and visible membership. The poem measures justice by where a person is allowed to sit.
The word "brother" in line 2 makes the excluded man family. He is not a stranger or a servant in this line. He is a sibling, only "darker". This makes the exclusion a wrong within a family. It also implies that the people at the table are his brothers too.
Patience appears here as a form of strength, not surrender. The speaker answers exclusion with "But I laugh" and goes on to "grow strong". The eating in the kitchen feeds the growth that makes the future possible. The poem can be read as quiet endurance or as a gathering of power. Both readings rest on the same three short lines.
The poem also reverses shame. Those who exclude him will "be ashamed" once they "see how beautiful I am". Shame moves from the excluded man to those who excluded him. His beauty is stated plainly, with no need for proof.
The tone is calm and confident. The speaker reports his exclusion in flat, plain sentences, without complaint. His response, "But I laugh", shows he is not wounded by it. The laugh can be read as good humour or as quiet defiance. The text allows both.
In the third stanza the tone firms into certainty. "Nobody'll dare" is a prediction spoken almost as a warning. The single word "Then." gives it weight. The fourth stanza adds pride, as he states that others will see his beauty. The last line settles into simple assertion, more certain than the first.
The poem has 18 lines in 5 stanzas of 1, 6, 7, 3 and 1 lines. It is free verse, with lines from 1 to 9 syllables. There is no regular metre and no rhyme scheme.
The only matched line endings are repeated words. "America" ends the first and last lines, which frame the poem. "comes" ends line 4 and line 10, and "kitchen" ends line 3 and line 13. These echoes tie the future scene to the present one.
The lines are short, often three syllables, which slows the reading. Line 14 holds a single word. The one-line stanzas at the start and end stand apart like a statement and its answer.
I, too, am America.The last line repeats the first with "am" in place of "sing". The small change makes the closing claim stronger than the opening one.
I am the darker brother.The speaker presents himself as a sibling in the national family. The word makes his exclusion a wrong done within a family.
eat in the kitchenThe kitchen stands for being hidden inside the household. It marks a place that is inside the house but out of the guests' sight.
at the tableThe table stands for equal and visible membership. The poem's hope is measured by a change of seat.
And eat well,Lines 6 and 7 each begin with "And". The chain of short clauses builds a steady sense of growing strength.
But I laugh,The expected response to exclusion is hurt or anger. The laugh refuses that response and shows the speaker is not diminished.
Nobody'll dareThe sentence runs on across lines 11 to 14. Broken into short pieces, the prediction builds slowly to its final word.
I, too, sing America.The commas set "too" apart and make the reader pause on it. The pause stresses that the speaker joins others who already sing.
Nobody'llThe spoken contraction keeps the voice plain and direct. The warning sounds like ordinary speech, not rhetoric.
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Readers
well i am only 14 but i believe that this poem is beautiful.One of my favorite parts is when Hughes says "Besides, they'll see how beautiful i am and be ashamed".he is one of my all time favorite writers and i for one think all his work is good!
i like this poem very much because even back then when people wrote in confusing ways, i can completley understand and enjoy this particular poem written by Langston hughes. He is an excellent writer.
this is a great poem
I think this poem is very good...it gives the reader an insight into the savage aspect of the American Dream, where equality, etc. is supposed to be on eof the main beliefs. However, the white family (I presume) send their black slave to the kitchen as they believe that Afro-American(?) is not pure American. This goes against their claims therefore and also against the religion of Christianity, which many Americans…
Read the whole commentI think this poem is very good...it gives the reader an insight into the savage aspect of the American Dream, where equality, etc. is supposed to be on eof the main beliefs. However, the white family (I presume) send their black slave to the kitchen as they believe that Afro-American(?) is not pure American. This goes against their claims therefore and also against the religion of Christianity, which many Americans follow. Also, "They'll see how beautiful I am and be ashamed" suggests to me that yes, the family will be ashamed as deep down they know it is contradictory to act in this way...however, it also suggests to me that the poet is perhaps also American as far as personality is concerned as he too in concerned with skin-deep beauty: something Westerners are renowned for.
Overall, a great poem.
This is one of the greatest poems i have studied so far.It gives reference to the Blacks living in America.I Too sing America and other poems by Langston Hughes gave me much understanding about how the blacks were treated in America.
i feel it is a poem that tells the sufferings,humilation and hardship that the black skinned experienced
I think that Langhston Hughes is a very good writer. He is not ashamed to say that his black skin is beutiful!!!
Langhston is Gangsta
This poem has so many metaphors and symbols in such a small quantity. I love breaking this down, but i am still confused. Is the "table" a symbol of the projected views of americans during the 1920's or is it the view of African Americans during the Harlem R...???
I like this Lansgston because he is not afraid to show and speak about true colors.
Langston Hughes poems are just splendid! Reading his poems make me feel like a whole different person they make me want to cry.
What a poem i love the feeling of it. It teaches you alot and I will love intreprteing in in class. Thanks for the pride and hope hughes
It was very hard for me to relate this peom to myself for an assignment but i still know what it means.
i have to teach Langston Hughes to my class and i have to be able to break the poem down and explain the true and metaphor meaning of the poem. can someone please give me the true back round of the poem or can they please give me a site i can go to to get it.
I love Langston Hughes' work. I, too, sing America is one of my favorite poems. I love the way he deals with how black americans are treated. I feel that it should be a requirement in all English Classes. There are many comparisons that can be made with how blacks are treated in 2005!
I am doing a project on this poem and I found it easy to understand, but hard to pick apart.
This is a very insightful and colorful poem that is clear and understandable and has a very deep meaning. I am doing a project on the poem and i feel like i ate some spicy food when i read it. it is edible! great poem
"I, Too"; the basis of the idea is alienation and loneliness through discrimination - the narrator eats in the kitchen. This is a simple construction of intolerance and bigotry, but as the poem ends, you'll notice that the symbolism of revolution, be it metaphorical or reality based, empowers the isolated man to move, from which point the isolated becomes the isolator. The entire poem is a symbol of bigotry as a symbol of the flip-flopping of social power structures.
you will find the symbolism your looking for [pertaining to table], by recalling Americas policy of blacks not being allowed to eat with white people, a policy that was also adopted by the white house].
I too, support america's beauty,and success, although i am of a different background. The politician want allow me to be apart of the decision makings of america. I am told to learn about what's going on through the tv, newspaper, or radio, so i smiled and acquired understanding, and knowledge, but one day, i will be at the polls when mainstream america votes. Nobody can stop me from voting for a person of my choice, furthermore, they will witness my beauty, and success, and be embarassed about the way they treated me, because i am your brother.
The Interpretation of I , Too, AM AMERICA
As I watched the devastating effects of Hurricaine Katrina and listened to the "finger pointing" statements of the United States leadership , my thoughts focused on this poem: " I, Too, Sing America" regardless of socio economic status , "I, Too, Sing America" , regardless of my political orientation, "I Too, Sing America"; although our financial contributions are minor compared to the needs of the citizens of New Orleans, Alabama and Mississippi, "We Too, Sing America".
This is trully an amazing poem that says so much by stating so little. I admire people who tell it like it is and arent afraid to show the true colors of America.
I,Too . . relates to the aspect of the period of the Harlem Renaissance. This movement of African American artists and writers would aid efforts for civil rights. When Langston Hughes wrote I,Too he transformed African American Identy and history. Before the Harlem Renaissance few whites knew how African Americans felt. I, too , sing American really opened up peoples eyes. People could see for the first time in writing that African Americans were smart intellectuals.
Why has no one mentioned the obvious connection to Walt Whitman's "I Hear America Singing?" Hughes was responding to Whitman's poem, as well as concurrently creating a poem entirely different. "I, too," shows empathy.
I think that the last line- "I, too, am America" is a reference to America's struggle with the Bristish empire in the mid 1700's. Langston is relating his struggles with the history of the country, when America was told to "be quiet" by the world.
The poem can be compared to Claude McKays "America". In it Claude speaks of his love/hate relationship with America. However , Claude does not cower to the kitchen and wait for a day to be accepted. He confronts her head on. " Although she feeds me bread of bitterness, And sinks into my throat her tigers tooth, stealing my breath of life, I will confess I love this cultured hell that tests my youth..." Claude seems to become energized in his quest for racial equality in a racist america. He too sings america. Check out "If we must die" by McKay
For the first time african americans are coming out and saying we are proud of who we are. And you may look down at us today but tomorrow we may be equal and you won't be ashamed of me.
Although i'm not african american, I'm hispanic i think he did it because he wanted equality for everyone. and he was trying to say everyone is equal and we have the same rights
i sing america too.
I like this poem alot because it says that african-american people are equal no matter what other people think of us
this poem is wonderful and I think it speaks for it self..we all are EQUAL no matter what..it;s not just the white man who is AMERICAN Im american you American and we all are ...I Too am American.
hey Langston Hughes u write good poems and books this poem is a good poet
this poem speaks loud and clear my children have preformed this in black history programs and will contine to do so.
i love this poem...it speaks to my heart....i start my day everyday by reading this poem..
this poem is truly meaningfull and with lots of thoughts i really like it.
this poem is very interesting because i understand what the character mean when he is tired of not being seen when company is there. I would want people to see my beautiful face and nice skin even though its a different color. this poem is very touching so i hope a lot of people read this i recomend
my 7th grade teach, a white lady, made our memorized this poem. I's almost 30 years later i still remember this poem and love it. i am from the United States Virgin Island
I can relate to the poem because I lived with my aunt for 7 years and was severely mistreated. I wasn't considered part of the family, but rather, a slave.
this poem reflects a general attitude for change. langston hughes effectively foreshadows the civil rights movement.
I WAS LIKE WOW THIS IS LIKE THE BEST POEM LIKE EVERR!!.
This is part of my research paper on uplifting poets of the Harlem Renaissance: This theme of beauty is also exemplified in Langston Hughes’ poem “I, Too.” Hoping for a future of racial equality, Hughes proclaims “Tomorrow […] /they’ll see how beautiful I am/ […] I too, am American.” The sestet, lines two through seven, he begins with “I am the darker brother.” The word “brother” signifies one half of an equal…
Read the whole commentThis is part of my research paper on uplifting poets of the Harlem Renaissance:
This theme of beauty is also exemplified in Langston Hughes’ poem “I, Too.” Hoping for a future of racial equality, Hughes proclaims “Tomorrow […] /they’ll see how beautiful I am/ […] I too, am American.” The sestet, lines two through seven, he begins with “I am the darker brother.” The word “brother” signifies one half of an equal partnership; the other is the white man or lighter brother. This relation immediately establishes Hughes’ quest for equality, and white society’s ignorance to the equivalence. By identifying the beauty of his African American culture, Hughes creates reason for white acceptance and asks for racial impartiality.
As others have pointed out, this poem works on so many different levels. The fact that Hughes himself was an African American, and the line "I am the darker brother," certainly suggests that it is about being an African American -- but it could also be about being a Latino, a homosexual or even a Goth (think about how Goths were demonized after the Columbine incident)! It's really about exclusion in a country that claims to be "e pluribus unum" -- "one out of many."
I think that Langhston Hughes is a very good writer. He is not ashamed to say that his black skin is beutiful!!!
Learn how to spell "beautiful".
We had to study it at low middle school in Italy. We fell in love with it from line 1. My sister and I still quote it often to the children in our family. And, adapted, it has become our feminist statement.
I believe it is the most beautiful poem ever written.
I love Edgar Allen Poe!
i think that this poem definently show how langson was tired and wanted everyone to rise up and be treated like a regular person
This is definately one of my all time favorite Langston Hughes. The statment he is making on a person's desire and right to be treated equally inspires me every time I read the poem.
I seemed to fall into asleep just because of learning boring poems and then suddenly feel excied when i heard my teacher to explain "i,too".How beautiful the poem is!
Liked it alot foreal
the poem has a deeper meaning than what it seems. I really liked it and had to do a presentation about it.
Best Poem ever lied my eyes on its refreshing and uplifts our lives as people of colour.Andrew,Zambia
it was ight
I read the poem I,Too infront of my hole school and did a great job for Black History Month
I liked this poem alot. Im in my 3rd year of high school and so far this poem has made it awesome. I like it alot. People of his nationality are most likely grateful that Langston Hughes wrote this poem. This makes me happy and to anyone who reads this, I hope you feel the same. I like it alot and me being one of the darker teenagers at my school (Native American) I feel that everyone has a right to be free.
it is fantastic.....very very...beatiful!!!!!
The poem I, Too, written by Langston Hughes, uses excellent language, vivid imagery and strong sounds to express the poet's feelings towards racism. I, Too is an anti-discrimination poem, which shows the injustice of racism. The poem is very effective because of its genuine emotions and also because it makes us to rflect on an issue that issue very common nowadays.
The poem I, Too, written by Langston Hughes, uses excellent language, vivid imagery and strong sounds to express the poet's feelings towards racism. I, Too is an anti-discrimination poem, which shows the injustice of racism. In addition, the poem make us to reflect on an issue that is very commom nowadays.
I TOO SING AMERICA
Almost 20 years after I graduated, I still remember this power inspiring poem by Langston Hughes. It reminds me how we and our professor were discussing this short poem during our literature sessions by telling one another this:'before God there is no colour or race'
I too ...
I, Too" by Langston Hughes The poem "I, Too" by Langston Hughes is an excellent example of a poem using the word "I" as something other than its literal meaning. "I, Too" is about the segregation of African Americans, whites and how soon segregation will come to an end. The first line of "I, Too" uses the word "I" right away. The line states "I, too, sing America". This meter in particular is as important as the…
Read the whole commentI, Too" by Langston Hughes
The poem "I, Too" by Langston Hughes is an excellent example of a poem using the word "I" as something other than its literal meaning. "I, Too" is about the segregation of African Americans, whites and how soon segregation will come to an end.
The first line of "I, Too" uses the word "I" right away. The line states "I, too, sing America". This meter in particular is as important as the entirety of the poem. It means not only whites are Americans, but African Americans are citizens and should be treated equally. In the following stanza, the word "I" is used several times. The first line of the second stanza states "I am the darker brother" -- meaning he may be African American, but he is still an American. The following five meters state "They send me to eat in the kitchen. When company comes, but I laugh, and eat well, and grow strong". The use of "I" here is showing that African Americans do not worry about what is being done, but how they are growing stronger as segregation continues, knowing soon they will be equal.
The third stanza shows what the future will be like, or as Hughes uses the metaphorical "tomorrow." The stanza reads "Tomorrow, I’ll be at the table when company comes. Nobody’ll dare say to me, "Eat in the kitchen," Then". The use of "I" helps showing the African American community will soon rise and be one with the rest of America.
The fourth stanza concludes in a way which states African Americans are not inherently bad, but inherently good. The stanza reads "Besides, they’ll see how beautiful I am and be ashamed – I, too, am America". Here Hughes says that once African American's are recognized as equal, everyone will see they are not bad and that they are beautiful as well as part of America.
Langston Hughes is a talented poet who uses metaphors and his own style of writing to increase the effectiveness of his overall message. His usage of "I" helps reiterate that he too is an American and will not be let down by society nor will other African Americans. "I, Too" depicts the view of African Americans in the past and their strength to move forward.
Democracy, by Langston Hughes
It is no surprise that democracy in the United States was nonexistent in the early 1900s and throughout the Jim Crow era, for blacks had no rights. Democracy back then was laughable and a joke - and outright biased. Government rule by the people pertained to whites exclusively, excluding all African Americans.
Therefore, Langston Hughes felt compelled to speak his mind for equality and his birthright freedom via poetry. He clearly addresses his points of view about democracy in the first stanza of "Democracy" (1949).
He declares the following: "Democracy will not come / Today, this year / Nor ever / Through compromise and fear." He believes his rights should parallel those of white people, without compromising his dignity in any way. He declares he is an American and should have the rights to stand on his two feet and own his land, supported by lines 7 through 9.
He doesn't want to wait for freedom; he wants to fight for freedom and make a change. Moreover, he is not too fond of passive individuals who say the following, "Let things take their course / Tomorrow is another day," because that kind of attitude signifies submission.
He indicates that everybody should have the right to exercise their freedom because that's a birthright, for whites, blacks, and whomever. The final three lines - "I live here, too / I want freedom / Just as you" - need no interpretation, because the clarity of what he wants is obvious.
Democracy implies free and equal representation of people; in more concrete language, it implies free and equal right of every single soul to participate in a system of government, which was nonexistent to blacks at the juncture, due to the Jim Crow laws.
The poem "Democracy" by Langston Hughes is one of many great poems (poetic protest) conceived throughout his illustrious poetic life. Written in 1949, he obviously wanted change and equality in the present when he was alive, and not in the future, for a dead man has no right to freedom. Appropriately, he had a pessimistic view of democracy because blacks were treated badly and suffered greatly.
Can anyone blame a man for having such a negative view on democracy while living in a racist society? Absolutely not! Thousands of Black Americans had the same feeling.
In reality, democracy was profoundly one-sided, for blacks were not allowed to be involved with any decision making, etc. Freedom and equality summarize the entire poem, for that is what Hughes wanted at the time - basic entitlement for one and for all.
commenting
I LOVE THE POEM I TOO IT GIVES YOU A CLEAR UNDRESTANDING OF WAT BLACKS HAD TO GO THROUGH DURING DAT TIME LIKE FORREAL MANE....
I, Too, Sing America
This poem stands out. In it I see the progression of blacks-from isolation, to the small upgrades, and then finally freedom, and being treated like a normal person.
DEMOCRACYA BY Langstone Hughes
Basically this poem was written at aright time since the American Blacks were critically humiliated, mistreated,tortured and abandoned by the white`s government under Jim Crows Law.The poet Langston Hughes addresses the issue of freedom to be an instant possession, that means you cannot say somebody to wait for his or her right while he or she is getting terrible pains. e.g in stanza three verse two ``let things take their course``is the result of the disturbances and harsh actions done by white`s government towards the Blacks to the extent that some of the Blacks have lost their hope things to be equal rights manner. AMONISYE MLELWA from TANZANIA
analysis
the poem I,Too by langston hughes is about equal right in america between blacks and whites if you concentrates the meaning of the text itself (objective critics)
Thepoem is so good indeed and understandable easly language is simple and complex
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I enjoyed inrdaeg Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening most because of the way it read. It was easier to understand and was more consistant than the other poems. Also, this poem was more interesting in my opinion so I found it more interesting to read in general. I also think it did the best in describing the point, but in fewer words so as to keep a better flow to the poem.
Wow this is a great new critic argument.. I've enjoyed going through it