Well said Rachel, well said! Although I think when Hughes says “this is my land too” he is simply referring to the treatment of the blacks as second class citizens. However, considering his class viewpoint, I have no doubt he was against private property.
Upon reading Langston Hughes’s ‘Democracy’, I am struck by his radicalism. I understand ‘no compromise or fear’ as a complete renunciation of those who choose the side of the fence according to whichever direction the wind blows: classic petite bourgeoisie mentality as well as the courage it takes to be willing to sacrifice one’s life for freedom from the chains of capitalism. When the poet tells us ‘this is my land too’, this is, in essence, a rejection of private property. And lastly, by destroying the legitimacy of evolution within the lines of ‘patience’ for ‘tomorrow’s bread’ he indeed calls to the urgent need for revolution.
2 Comments
A. Behrang
Well said Rachel, well said! Although I think when Hughes says “this is my land too” he is simply referring to the treatment of the blacks as second class citizens. However, considering his class viewpoint, I have no doubt he was against private property.
Rachel
Upon reading Langston Hughes’s ‘Democracy’, I am struck by his radicalism. I understand ‘no compromise or fear’ as a complete renunciation of those who choose the side of the fence according to whichever direction the wind blows: classic petite bourgeoisie mentality as well as the courage it takes to be willing to sacrifice one’s life for freedom from the chains of capitalism. When the poet tells us ‘this is my land too’, this is, in essence, a rejection of private property. And lastly, by destroying the legitimacy of evolution within the lines of ‘patience’ for ‘tomorrow’s bread’ he indeed calls to the urgent need for revolution.