Langston Hughes began writing poems as a teenager. Years later, he became a famous American author — writing poems, short stories, novels, children’s books, and plays. Hughes ended up as one of the most important voices of Black culture. And along the way, his works changed American culture as well.
Langston Hughes was born in Joplin, Missouri, in either 1901 or 1902. He moved to Cleveland, Ohio, as a teenager with his mother. He was a writer for his high school newspaper and the editor of the yearbook. And he kept writing poems. He wanted to get his work published, but he was having trouble finding people who were interested.
One train ride changed all that. After graduating from high school, Hughes boarded a train headed south toward Mexico to see his father. As the train crossed the Mississippi River, he was inspired to write a poem about it. In this poem, Hughes connected the experiences of people like him to the natural world. “My soul has grown deep like the rivers,” wrote Hughes. An important magazine published this poem in 1921.
In the early 1920s, Hughes attended Columbia University, a college in New York City. He began to explore the neighborhood of Harlem — and quickly fell in love with it. The people and sights of Harlem inspired Hughes. “I love the color of their language,” Hughes would later write. “Their problems and interests are my problems and interests.”
In 1926, Hughes published his first book of poetry: The Weary Blues. His writing style was different from many other poets at the time. He wrote honestly about the lives of Black people. Some thought this made his work less interesting. But Hughes wouldn’t change his style. “We know we are beautiful,” Hughes wrote in 1926. “And ugly too,” he added. “We stand on top of the mountain, free within ourselves.”
His style paid off. Between his poetry, speeches, and books, Hughes supported himself entirely through his writing. He was the first Black American to do that. He became part of the Harlem — an important movement for Black culture in the 1920s and 1930s. Hughes also worked to represent Black culture in the arts. He used common speech patterns of Black people from Harlem in his poetry. He combined poetry and a style of Black music called jazz. And he helped start magazines and theater companies that supported Black artists.
Hughes’ works even inspired other Black artists. For example, Lorraine Hansberry wrote a popular Broadway play, A Raisin in the Sun. Its title comes from one of Hughes’ poems, called “Harlem.”
Langston Hughes made his teenage dreams come true by becoming a poet. In fact, he was always a strong believer in the power of dreams. “Hold fast to dreams,” he wrote in one of his poems. “For if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly.”
Updated February 16, 2022, 5:03 P.M. (ET)
By Tyler Burdick
