Harlem Poetry Discussion (Langston Hughes) Summary, Analysis, Interpretation

A poetry discussion for Harlem by Langston Hughes

[duffypratt]

I’ve always read the ‘dream deferred’ as referring to the American Dream. The poem, after all, is named Harlem, so it’s not too hard to think that the poem might be about race. The narrator catalogs different responses to the deferment by oppositions. The explosion is the possibility of violence, and its italicized as a kind of warning. Not an endorsement, but the recognition of the tragedy that is looming. Moreover, I think it’s kind of hard for me to read this without also thinking of King’s “I Have a Dream’ speech several decades later. Basically, while I think it’s interesting to read this poem personally, I think that it’s ultimately more political (or social commentary) than personal.