1. “Dream Deferred” and “Dreams”
Pages 620 and 621

2. Langston hughes (1902-1967) Born in Missouri
First African American to have a “strictly literary career”
Ability to express “the spirit of Black America”
Influenced by his grandmother and her stories
and by the Harlem Renaissance (1920s)

3. “Dream Deferred” (1951) deferred: (adj.) put off until a future time
First word of the poem:
Harlem
“What happens to a dream deferred?” means:
What happens to a dream that isn’t realized?
What does Hughes compare a dream deferred to? (series of similes)
a raisin in the sun (dry up)
a sore
rotten meat
syrupy sweet (crust over)
heavy load
Last line: Metaphor? why is it italicized?
explode- violent act bomb
relates to Harlem (people)
Message (Theme) of the poem:
postponing dreams can lead to frustration/violence

4. “Dreams” Metaphors: The speaker tells the reader to:
For if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird
when dreams go, life is a barren field frozen with snow
The speaker tells the reader to:
hold on to dreams… don’t let them go
What is the theme of “Dreams”
A life without dreams is nothing-- dreams are what give life meaning… dreams give us hope