Harlem Analysis - Academic Mode

Harlem
by Langston Hughes

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore—
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over—
like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

Harlem Summary
Popularity of "Harlem": This short poem was written by Langston Hughes, a well-known American poet, writer, and playwright. "Harlem" is a thought-provoking literary piece about dreams and plans. First published in 1951, the poem shows what could happen if our dreams are not fulfilled in time. It talks about the fate of the postponed dream, including hopelessness.
"Harlem" as a representative of hopelessness: the poet tells his disappointment about postponed dreams. The poem begins with a question as he compares the dreams or goals to a raisin, meat, and candy. The poet has used these analogies to evoke the image of a dream displaced. Each picture allows the reader to feel what exactly happened to the speaker's dream and effect, as the description shows that his vision does not go away so easily. Instead, it goes through certain processes before reaching the actual state of decay.
Main Subjects in "Harlem": Delay, sadness and dreams are the main themes of this poem. The poem speaks about the oppression of African Americans. The tone suggests that their goals will always remain aloof and lose their meaning. The speaker feels that the burden of these dreams, which says if the burden becomes unbreakable, it will explode. On a deeper level, the poet speaks of people having big ideas, but life never allows them to make their dreams a reality. The same goes for African Americans. They wanted to break free from the clutches of racism, but white supremacy did not allow them to let readers interpret it in different ways. Langston Hughes also used some literary means in this poem to express his ideas. Analysis of some of the literary means used in this poem has been given below w.

Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds on the same line. For example, the / e / sound in "Does it stink of rotten meat?" And the sound of / o / in "O oozes like a sore."
Consonance: The consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line. For example, the sound of / n / in "like a raisin in the sun" .
Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not end in a line break; instead, go to the next line. For example,
"Maybe
just sinks like a heavy load."

Pictures: Pictures are used to make readers perceive things that involve their five senses. For example, "like a raisin in the sun", "It stinks of rotten meat" and "Or it explodes".
Métafora: It is a rhetorical figure in which an implicit comparison is made between different objects or people. For example, “Or does it explode? Here the poet compares broken dreams to a bomb.
Simile: It is a phrase used to compare something with something else, to help readers understand what it means. For example: “Does it dry out like a raisin in the sun? "," It stinks like rotten meat "and" Like a syrupy candy. "Here the broken dreams are compared to decaying food.
Rhetorical question: The rhetorical question is a sentence that is intended to clarify the point. For example," Or does it explode? "And" Does it smell of rotten meat? "
Analyze the one in" Harlem. " “Poetic devices used
Poetic and literary devices are the same, but some are only used in poetry. Here is the analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem

Strophe: A stanza is a poetic form of a few lines. This is a short poem consisting of eleven lines with no stanza breaks.
End Rhyme: End Rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. For example “meat / sweet” and “sun / run”.
Rhyme Scheme: There is no specific rhyme scheme in this poem. The first four lines, however, consist of the ABCB rhyme scheme.
Quotes to use
The lines below and also the entire poem are suitable for people who long for freedom.

“What happens to a postponed dream?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or does it fester like a wound -
And then does it work?
Or crust and sugar,
like a syrupy sweet?