Analysis of as Befits a Man

Jason McCullum

Mr. Kavanaugh

Honors English 10, Hour 6

15 March 2018

Fame Befits A Man

Langston Hughes was a civil rights activist and poet his entire life. Therefore, Hughes tended to write often about civil rights issues. He wrote about the issues and struggles that happened during the 1940’s and 1950’s when African Americans were struggling to get their freedom.. However, in Langston’s poem “As Befits A Man”, Hughes does not dwell on fighting for civil rights, but instead focuses on simply mocking fame and glory. Through occasional rhyming, an emotional shift, and frequent anaphoras, Hughes emphasizes the message to his readers to not solely desire fame. These actions should allow for one to get remembered after death, which everyone should make their ultimate goal in life.

To begin, Hughes uses sparse, but powerful rhymes to represent the actions he wants people to take after his death. Rhyming draws more attention to the emotions of the citizens: the depression that is brought to society following Langston’s death. In the first stanza, Hughes rhymes line two and four; “I’d hate to die all alone!/I want a dozen pretty women/To holler, cry, and moan.” (Lines 2-4). Later on he declares “when they let me down,/down into the clay,/I want the women to holler:/Please don’t take him away!” (Lines 13-16). Both rhymes show how he wants for women to be at his funeral, begging for him not to be dead. Rhymes are traditionally used to draw more attention to that part of a poem. People enjoy rhyming because it flows well and normally makes an interesting sound: authors use these sounds to make readers more interested in their work. Hughes uses the same technique to show that once he dies, he wants for society, and more specifically women, to not only mourn his death, but beg for him to return. Hughes attempts to display how fame and glory is not the only thing that should be desired after death. Throughout “As Befits A Man”, Hughes uses more poetic techniques to draw attention to his references to people only wanting fame and glory and how more should be desired.

Secondly, during “As Befits A Man”, Hughes uses an emotional shift to draw more attention to desires of being missed due to having a fandom. During the first three stanzas of the poem, Hughes describes the joy of his funeral occurring and the events that take place. He references “a big brass band” performing and “a dozen pretty women/[who] holler, cry, and moan,” (Line 3-4, 9). However, at line 13, a shift occurs, showing how the narrator wants for people to not celebrate his death and be more depressed. He describes that when the narrator dies, he wants for women to holler “please don’t take daddy away!” (Line 18). The shift of the emotions ranging from joyful and festive to sad shows how people want to have attention after his death and have whatever form of fame he required while living still be intact posthumous. Hughes tries to display a happy funeral at first to make the sad parts of the narrator’s funeral more dramatic. He clearly states how he wants for women at his funeral