18 pages • 36 minutes read
Langston HughesI, Too
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1926A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Literary Devices
Metaphor
“I, Too” consists of one extended metaphor. The metaphor centers around the domestic image of a dinner table: The people who eat at it and those who are excluded. The only indication Hughes gives that this poem is about race is when he identifies himself as the “darker brother” (Line 2). The rest of the poem builds on the imagery of the dinner table and the treatment Hughes receives there.
The dinner table image functions as a metaphor for American society and the treatment of its citizens. The dinner table and the coming together of people around it are traditional American images. The Thanksgiving holiday celebrates the sharing of a meal between the Pilgrims and Native Americans. The Fourth of July and other major holidays in America typically feature the gathering of people and sharing of food. By describing himself as someone whom white people have denied a seat, Hughes illustrates the mistreatment of African Americans. He asserts that he is someone who not only belongs at the table, but someone who will thrive there. His exclusion is the loss of those who deny him, and he will not suffer because of it.
Allusion
Hughes’s poem alludes to Walt Whitman’s in both title and content. He never mentions Whitman or his poem. However, “I, Too” echoes Whitman’s imagery and language, making it feel like a direct response.
Hughes’s tone is never more than confident and assertive. He does not deride Whitman for forgetting about him, but the title does suggest a bold correction. By not titling the poem “I, Too, Sing America,” Hughes adds emphasis to the gravity of Whitman’s slight. One can infer other things after “I, Too:” I, Too, Am Human; I, Too, Am an American; I, Too, Matter; and so on.
Hughes emphasizes this by echoing and modifying the first line at the end of the poem. “I, too, sing America” (Line 1) changes to “I, too, am America” (Line 18). Hughes makes clear how essential Black Americans are and have been to the country, and his assertion intends to make sure no other picture of America is incomplete again.
Form and Meter
“I, Too” is a free verse poem with no rhyme scheme, no set rhythm, and no syllabic pattern. Instead of relying on poetic structure, Hughes relies on repetition of language, pacing, and enjambment, where sentences continue without pause after a line’s end, into the following line.
The two main stanzas, stanzas two and three, are the meat of the poem and constitute opposing sections. The first stanza is the past, and the second stanza is the future. Hughes establishes contrast by repeating the phrases “when company comes” (Lines 4, 10) and “eat in the kitchen” (Lines 3, 13). The first use of each line is in a negative context, but the second use of each line is positive. The repetition amplifies the change that happens over time, adding more weight to Hughes’s confidence in the future.
Additionally, Hughes uses repetition between the first and last lines of the poem. “I, too, sing America” (Line 1) turns into “I, too, am America” (Line 18). This repetition signifies change. It is an example of form matching content.
Hughes uses enjambment to establish tone. In stanza two, he moves from longer lines—"They send me to eat in the kitchen” (Line 3)—to short, enjambed phrases: “But I laugh, / And eat well, / And grow strong” (Lines 5-7). The repetition of structure, the short, staccato phrases, and the enjambment add emphasis to each line that follows. The effect is dramatic, which is what Hughes intends.
Later in the poem, Hughes enjambs dramatically: “Nobody’ll dare / Say to me, / “Eat in the kitchen,” / Then” (Lines 11-14). He breaks up each line into short phrases. The brevity help the phrases to stand out; they add emphasis and slow the reader down. By ending with the single word “then” (Line 14) at the end of the stanza, Hughes provides one more jolt of drama, focusing attention on the speaker’s conviction about the future.
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