I would liken you
To a night without stars
Were it not for your eyes.
I would liken you
To a sleep without dreams
Were it not for your songs.

Analysis, meaning and summary of Langston Hughes's poem Quiet Girl

35 Comments

  1. kristen says:

    i love the poem. im going 2 show it 2 my 6th grade classmates

  2. ricahrd says:

    this one touched me it is a wounderful poem

  3. Heather says:

    loved it

  4. Noel says:

    one of the best. i have read his poems, essays, and short stories and find that they all have a deaper meaning, and a point. he talks to you in ways most american writers or thinkers can’t, i dont like poets that use too many words and say too little, (i.e robert frost) langston is able to say so much with so little words and that is what i truly admire about him

  5. MaryJane says:

    This is one of my favorite poems! I love poetry and if I was more thoughtful I would write. I had to do a report on Langston Hughes and read on of his poems out loud to the class I decided since it was short and beautiful this one would be perfect!!!

  6. Xiao says:

    I love poetry and when I saw this poem it just inspierd me to write, I’m all so a poet but I’m not ver good (and not good at spelling) ^.^

  7. stella says:

    I think this poem is very beautiful and delicate. The title is quiet girl, she is quiet as a dark night but her eyes are like stars. she is quiet as a deep sleep but her songs are like dreams.

  8. Kate says:

    OMG i luv Langston and this poem is so cute

  9. hani says:

    Hughes was interested in setting other criterian for beauty. Instead of likening beautiful girls to moons and stars, He likened his girl to a black queit night. its stars hided themselves when the girl’s eyes showed up. And so did the dreams, when her songs played.
    All that ha happened in just six verses.

  10. Laeli says:

    I think its so sweet.

  11. daby says:

    this one’s a nice poem. Langston can put so much thought in a few words. and that is something to be desired in a poet. whereas some poems confuse, Langston’s are simple and filled with thoughts of the simplicities of life without having to exaggerate them so that the essence is altogether lost.

  12. Norma says:

    i thought the poem was very well done and i think it is rude for people to say that langston’s poems sux and make rude comments about his poetry. And it would be more helpful for those people lokking for hepl when writting essay’s and reports if others told why they thought the poem was good and alittle bit of there understanding about the poem….

    my understandig is that girl is very shy and wouldnt have been noticed if it wasnt for her eyes, because they were so beautiful and her here songs are like a dream.

  13. kristin says:

    Uday, I liked the poem but i just i kinda did understand it. when i went to see what other people thought of it i think i really like what you thought it meant. Thanks alot.

  14. Uday Desai says:

    I tried to find something here that would help me understand this poem. But what I found is the comments, either saying that one did not understand the poem, or the poem is good. If some one liked it or found it to be good poem, the person better explained why (s)he liked it.
    Any way here is my understanding…

    I see you as a dark night without stars, except for your eys. Poet wants to emphasize the beauty of her eyes.

    Simlilary your (the girl’s) songs are like dreams in a sleep.
    If this is what it means in more plain words this is really a wonderful poem. The poem tells lot many things in those few words. It may take at least a one full page then to really explain it.

  15. melissa says:

    I love this poem it’s inspiring and peacfull

  16. Jazz says:

    I thought the poem was pretty good.Good poems you cant understand an thats why it so good, because theres a sercet message thats lays in it.

  17. Tiffanie Knode says:

    This Poem realli didnt make since but I love Langston Hughes’s poems. They have inspired me to become a writer when i grow up. I hope tat these Poems help u in sum way.
    -Tiffanie
    Age-13!

  18. KRISTEN says:

    THIS POEM WAS SO BORING.LOL.
    YOU NEED SOME SERIOUS HELP ON YOUR LINES.
    TALK TO ROBERT FROST.
    LAME!
    HELP!

  19. Erin Troyer says:

    That poem was very beautiful. I love hughes’s work. As for the one that said that they were a lot better well here is a bit of a reality check….shut up and stop braging. Hughes is a much better poet than you and I don’t even know who you are!

  20. Erin Troyer says:

    That poem was very beautiful. I love hughes’s work. As for the one that said that they were a lot better well here is a bit of a reality check….shut up and stop braging. Hughes is a much better poet than you and I don’t even know who you are!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Do you have any comments, criticism, paraphrasis or analysis of this poem that you feel would assist other visitors in understanding the meaning or the theme of this poem by Langston Hughes better? If accepted, your analysis will be added to this page of American Poems. Together we can build a wealth of information, but it will take some discipline and determination.