The Weary Blues (Masterplots II: Poetry, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Langston Hughes
- First Published: 1923
- Type of Work: Lyric
- Genres: Poetry
- Subjects: African Americans
The Poem
“The Weary Blues” is a lyric poem with two voices. The central narrative voice describes an African American (or Negro, in this 1923 poem), in Harlem, New York, who is observed singing and playing a blues number. The poem provides a sample of the blues as well as an observation of the blues tradition from an outside source. As the title of the poem indicates, and the narrator suggests (with “droning” and “drowsy”), the musician is literally weary; the setting is late at night. Although the singer is weary, as his physical action, “a lazy sway,” implies,...
[The entire page is 1813 words long]
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