Natasha Trethewey: An Analysis Of White Lies By Langston Hughes

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I, too, sing America. I am the darker brother. They send me to eat in the kitchen- When company comes, But I laugh, And eat well, And grow strong. Tomorrow, I’ll be at the table-When company comes. Nobody’ll dare – Say to me, “eat in the kitchen,” Then. Besides, They’ll see how beautiful I am – And be ashamed_ I, too, am American. (Hughes 523) Langston Hughes expressed in his poem above “I, Too” how he was treated differently and separated from others because of his race. How one day he would be treated as an equal rather than treated like he is unworthy. Another poet named Natasha Trethewey’s poem “White Lies” expresses how growing up with lighter skin she pretended to be something she is not just to fit in. She would not have been accepted …show more content…
The poem made you feel like this young girl would do what it takes to fit in. That she had to change herself for others to see her and treat her how she wanted to be treated, equal. Anna Leahy herself writes,” The speaker hopes that the soap will lighten her skin.” (Leahy 116). I agree that she thought that would lighten her skin because of the emotion and sense of hope that Tretheway expressed in the text. Trethewey mentioned in her poem how she would claim another race while being amongst her own. The text opened your mind to think maybe this little girl was ashamed of who she was and where she came from and to fit in amongst others she believed in the lie she told that her mother did not approved …show more content…
Because the both shared different sides to a story, the black side that want to belong and the side who can passed for white and get the chance to witness the feeling of being accepted by another race. Though Natasha Trethewey’s poem “White Lies” is greatly written, and it provides great details with easy visual. It is a better look on how a young mind can get manipulated and feel like it is okay not to be yourself. On the other hand Hughes poem give you the feeling to want to be yourself. Langston Hughes “I, Too” delivers a strong message about equality. It delivers a sense of hope, that one day I will be treated the same, we are all the same, and we are all Americans. The powerful message and great details and visual in Hughes poem makes you feel what the young man is going through, his struggles that he had to overcome. This poem is very satisfying and in a sense open up your eyes about how things once

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