Throughout the entirety of the poem the mother compares her life to stairs that are broken down, dark, missing steps, and steps with tacks in them but she states she has never stopped climbing “But all the time I’se been a-climbin’ on,” and she used repetition by repeating a line to drive home the fact that her life hasn’t been easy. “And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.” Using these two methods the mother clearly states that even though life isn’t easy but you must keep climbing and…
The theme of, "Mother to Son," by Langston Hughes, is to keep moving on even when the worst of times is trying to hold you back. "Life for me ain't been no crystal stair/It's had tacks in it/And splinters,"(line 2-4). With this in mind, I believe the narrator is trying to metaphorically explain that the tacks and splinters in the mother's life are the parts in her life where she experience the most pain, like becoming broke or losing a family member. These tacks are what slows the mother down in her long climb, but, as she keeps saying, “She's been climbin’ on.” Also, line seventeen through eighteen describes, “Don't you set down on the steps/'Cause you finds it's kinder hard.” This furthers the point of the difficulty of life, if you stop…
In “Mother to Son,” Langston Hughes uses figurative languages like metaphors and tone to enhance the theme that you must keep going even through hard times. Hughes uses a metaphor to help show this theme by comparing two main ideas in the poem. A metaphor is a comparison between two unlike things in which one thing becomes another without using like or as. Hughes uses a metaphor when he compares the mother's life in the poem to a crystal stair. The mother in this quote tells her son “Don’t you fall now for I’se still goin’, honey, I’se still climbin’, and life for me ain’t been no crystal stair” (17-20). This metaphor explains how the mother’s life is very hard and no where near perfect. This metaphor connects to the theme of the poem, because…
When reading the two poems 'The rose that grew from concrete' written by Tupac Shakur and 'Mother to Son' by Langston Hughes, you will notice that they both have several distinct similarities and contrasts. The First poem written by Tupac Shakur talks about a rose that grows from a crack in the concrete all on its own with determination, and the central idea is that the hardships we face as children/teenagers don't have to shape our future in a negative way. The second poem by Langston Hughes is about a mother telling her son not to give up because she didn't when her life got hard, and the central idea is not to give up because all problems can be overcome with perseverance and determination. The biographical events that took place in both…
When he tells his father, his father responds, “There is no one to see.” The father than states that, “they must go now”. The boy gets very upset and the father questions, “Do you want to die? Is that what you want?” When the boy responds, “I don’t care,” the father gets upset and expresses to the boy that he, “musn’t say that” (McCarthy 85). This is a primary example of the father reassuring the boy still has hope. The father not only makes sure the boy has hope, he also tries to give the boy hope. He gives the boy hope by telling them they are not going to die soon. This is proven in the novel when the boy asks, “Are we going to die” and the man says, “Sometime. Not…
It brings in to play that every decision that you or I is making, right now, could be affecting the way that we live out the rest of our lives. In the same way that a small decision can negatively impact a person… the opposite can be true as well. The author Wes Moore lived in a neighborhood with just as much of a drug influence as the other… yet somehow he managed to disconnect himself from it and thrive in his situation. Both the author and the other had mothers who wanted the best for their sons… with absent father figures. The idea that a single parent could put everything they had into their kid is really inspirational. The other Wes Moore’s mother, Mary, worked hard to keep her kids in comfort, but her efforts ended up fruitless. The author Wes Moore’s mother Joy, worked multiple jobs in order to send him to a private school… and that ended up making all the difference in his life. He was forced to work harder and become interested in school, and he put his energy into more productive things such as basketball, or hanging out with friends, but he never let it get to the point where he was roped into the drug game. “The chilling truth is that his story could have been mine. The tragedy is that my story could have been his.” I agree with this statement, and I think that the story “The…
Everyone in there lives have made bad decisions that they regret, lead them to the wrong path, and wished they’ve made different decisions. However, I kind of would’ve wanted to have a childhood like any of them because they all went through hard times but at the end Jeannette and The author Wes became victorious. Furthermore, I would’ve somewhat liked to have a childhood like Jeannette's because her father would teach her things at times. For example, Jeannette states, “Dad kept telling me that he loved me, that he never would have let me drown, but you can’t cling to the side your whole, that one lesson every parent needs to teach a child is “ ‘If you didn’t want to sink, you better figure out how to swim’” (Walls, 66). If Jeannette's father never taught her that lesson then she wouldn’t have been…
In the short story "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes, the main character "mother" explains to her son difficulties in life and how they changed her outlook. The mother compares all of her life experiences to a staircase. She mentions that ,"life ain't been no crystal stair". This shows that her life has not been easy. She also compares life to a rundown staircase having "splinters" and "torn up in places".…
Susan Beth Pfeffer does a great job at depicting the importance of being a realist rather than a dreamer. Ashes’ father who is believed to be a dreamer struggles with his everyday life. He goes through every day hoping for the best. Ashes mother, however, is different. She always plays it safe. Susan Beth Pfeffer portrays that dreamers may sometimes be too far-fetched and need to be brought back to the real world sometimes. Ashes’ father has to rely on Ashes’ mother to help him get out of him slum. Susan Beth Pfeffer is conveying that it is better to be a realist, because it keepa you on the ball. Dreamers usually get side tracked, and stuck in difficult situations. An inferior theme that the author portrays is the idea of what parents are able to offer. Ashes mom provides a safe living environment for ashes. Ashes father on the other hand is poor, has his life upside down, and can be putting his little girl’s life in danger by owing people money. These are the complete opposites, but it…
Sometimes life doesn’t always go the way you want or expect it to happen. At times, when things aren’t going your way you just have to suck it up and keep going, A common theme so far in the texts in College Prep English had been for the characters to overcome a mindset or obstacles in order to better themselves or situation. Therefore, these texts can be grouped into the label “Life Almost Straight” because the mindset or obstacle in all veers the main character off the straight path. Even if there might be a roadblock in the plan it is important to stay close to the path in order to achieve goals being set. Obstacles in life connect to the human condition of growing, learning, and conquering these barriers.…
The poems, "If" and "Mother to Son" are both poems that addresses that the central idea is a life lesson. Both writings are similar because, they both have a similar central idea. Both authors convey this idea there are similarities and differences. Although, the poems have the same idea, there are similarities and differences. The poems come across life edvice.…
The poem describes life like a rollercoaster. Life is full of ups and downs, an emotional roller coaster ride that you can't quite imagine. The image that came up in my mind as i was reading the poem are two rollercoasters. One has ups, downs and loops, but the other is leveled and stable. The loops, ups and downs add thrill and color to the ride. It may be breath-taking but riders were obviously satisfied and happy overcoming and experiencing such ride. On the other hand, the other which was leveled and stable, was not that risky and extreme but, what is the point of riding a rollercoaster that has no “ups and downs”? Same as with life, the true meaning and essence of “living” is about failing, trying again, and succeeding. Being weak, and getting strong. Regret, and hope; life is not about despair and sorrow always. Life is not about success and happiness all the time either. But to live our lives to the fullest, we must have the courage and leap of faith to undergo all the “ups and downs” life would bring. The poem describes life like a…
The mother is nervous to see her daughter go down a “curved path of the park”. This “curved path” represents life with all its twists and turns. It is a symbol of life as unpredictable. It does not go in one straight line. The mother is afraid of the dangers that her daughter will encounter on her adventures in the world.…
The narrator laments that the thought of escaping to her present situation no longer consoled her because she “did not even have this to look forward to” (line 22). This forces the narrator to reflect on the underlying motivations driving her to act. Up to this point, it had been a desire to escape her life and find a better one elsewhere. Yet, she now feels unsure after she has accomplished that goal. She even describes her future as “a large gray patch surrounded by black, blacker, and blackest” (lines 58-59). This key line puts a stop to the thing that pushed her forward all this time—the hope for a better future. By destroying this fundamental part of her character, the narrator inevitably must find a new motivation to move forward and continue progression on the stairway of life. However, before she reaches that point, she reflects on whether looking towards the future truly is always better than living in the past. She does this by painting her past as “familiar and predictable” (line 40) solid ground, while her future is an “overcast seascape” (line 42) with seemingly no hope for progress. This metaphor pushes the narrator to find out what motivates her—hope for the future or longing for the…
Moreover, the speaker in “Mother to Son” has a strong and determined, but also caring personality. As readers, we see this because the speaker works relentlessly to climb the difficult stairs, but she also displays deep care for her son and doesn’t want him to give up. We see her perseverance when the woman says she keeps “climbing” stairs, even though she has often had to go into the “dark” (line 12) parts of the stairs that are “torn up” (line 5). This represents that she has often had struggles and moments of uncertainty in her life, yet she has always pushed through. This imagery of the broken stairs really pushes the idea that her life has had numerous struggles that she has had to overcome, and therefore she has a very courageous and strong willpower. Finally, she exemplifies her concern for her son by calling…