Dreams by Langston Hughes

Langston Hughes is identified with the Harlem Renaissance. This movement was so called because it describes the migration of millions of  African Americans from the Southern sates to the less racially intense Northern States. A significant amount of  middle class migrants had settled in Harlem, New York, hence, the name of  the movement. Harlem also is remembered as being the 'hotspot' of  the relatively new music forms at the time- jazz and blues.

Furthermore, the poem Dreams by Langston Hughes captures the struggle and frustration of  the African Americans while they were ardently fighting for equality. They collectively possessed a 'dream' and were acting in unison so that it would materialize and create a better tomorrow. Here is the poem:

Dreams
by Langston Hughes
Hold fast to dreams For if dreams die Life is a broken-winged bird That cannot fly. Hold fast to dreams For when dreams go Life is a barren field Frozen with snow.

The poetic composition Dreams by Langston Hughes portrays the importance of  having a dream. a dream may be defined as future aspiration or vision of  the future which one strive to make a reality. The interesting thing with the concept of having a dream is that it has two dimensions. Firstly, the dream is what you want to achieve and secondly, it is also what motivates you to keep overcoming the hurdles of  life. Hughes effectively conveys this concept using repetition, metaphor, and rhythm.

Firstly, the line- "Hold fast to dreams"- is repeated twice in the poem. It is the "moot" or "topic" of the entire poetic discourse. It expresses succinctly just what Hughes is trying to persuade the audience to do. He is persuading them to always have dreams to beautify their fight in this gaunt life. On the other hand, the repetition of  the line also emphasises the claim that having a dream is mandatory for survival. He uses it as rhetoric device in a similar manner as a motivational speaker would by repeating the "moot" so as to ensure that it is seared into the listener's mind. Likewise, Hughes is striving to sear this line into the minds of  the readers.

Secondly, this poem has many instances of  metaphor being used. Furthermore, the very first line can be viewed as a metaphor. This is so because the persona speaks about the dreams as if they are the mast which one holds on to in order to stay grounded during a storm while the woeful billows of  life rolls.  This metaphor effectively reveals the life sustaining and preserving property of  a dream. Another implicit comparison is made with a dream which may also be viewed as the use of  personification. It is found in the line- "For if dreams die." The poet compares dreams to humans, or in other words, he bestows dreams with the human quality of  dying.  This metaphor/ personification effectively conveys the fragility and mortality a dream possesses. It vividly impresses on the minds of  the readers just how easily a dream can be crushed and be cast to oblivion if the spirit is broken and the will to "hold on" is gone.


Additionally, Hughes utilizes a "broken-winged bird" metaphor which effectively expresses the immobility and crippling effect caused by the dying of  a dream. Not only does the individual lose the goal that they were striving to achieve but the drive and motivation to continue rising and improving dies. The individual is so devastated that there is is flying, no motivation to elevate to higher ground since there is no longer anything to fly to. This metaphor may also be reinforcing the idea of death from the previous metaphor of  dreams dying since in essence it describes the death of  the individual's spirit and heart.


In the next stanza another metaphor is used for dreams which also be considered a case of  personification. However, in this implicit comparison "dreams go." Once again dreams are bestowed with a human quality, however, in this case, it is the ability to leave. This comparison effectively portrays the loneliness and depression one feels when the dream goes like being abandoned by a lover. This idea of  misery, loneliness and depression is skillfully reinforced by the proceeding lines of  a "frozen field" metaphor. The wintry image created in these lines captures the misery and despair that one feels when a dream is destroyed. It is a perfect analogy of  the cold forlorn state of  the soul when a dream is snatched away. In addition, it also reveals the unproductive nature of  a pulverized soul, in the phrase- "barren field." The individual has no drive to contribute to society; no motivation to optimize the opportunities of  life.

Thirdly, the rhythm is also used to highlight the connection and interrelatedness between the metaphors in the poem. In the first stanza "die" rhymes with "fly" and in the second stanza the words "go" and "snow "rhyme. This subtle use of  end rhymes may reinforce the death theme in the two metaphors in the first stanza. Additionally, it may also emphasise the reinforcement of  the "dreams go" metaphor by the "barren field" metaphor.

In conclusion, Hughes masterfully and skillfully captures the devastation and hopelessness which results when a dream is lost. Therefore, he encourages us to "hold on to dreams" so that we would not get lost when the billows roll in the sea of  life. He capitalizes on the fact that not only does bread sustain life but the roses of  our dreams sustain our spirits.