Langston Hughes: Brass Spittoons

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Brass Spittoons

Brass Spittoons
by Langston Hughes

Clean the spittoons, boy.
Detroit,
Chicago,
Atlantic City,
Palm Beach.
Clean the spittoons.
The steam in hotel kitchens,
And the smoke in hotel lobbies,
And the slime in hotel spittoons:
Part of my life.
Hey, boy!
A nickel,
A dime,
A dollar,
Two dollars a day.
Hey, boy!
A nickel,
A dime,
A dollar,
Two dollars
Buy shoes for the baby.
House rent to pay.
Gin on Saturday,
Church on Sunday.
My God!
Babies and gin and church
And women and Sunday
All mixed with dimes and
Dollars and clean spittoons
And house rent to pay.
Hey, boy!
A bright bowl of brass is beautiful to the Lord.
Bright polished brass like the cymbals
Of King David’s dancers,
Like the wine cups of Solomon.
Hey, boy!
A clean spittoon on the altar of the Lord.
A clean bright spittoon all newly polished—
At least I can offer that.
Com’mere, boy!

Langston Hughes, “Brass Spittoons” from Collected Poems. Copyright © 1994 by The Estate of Langston Hughes.

See chapter 20 page 208-216
"In the lobby of the Drummer's Hotel there were six large brass spittoons--one in the center of the place, one in each corner, and one near the clerk's desk. It was Sandy's duty to clean these spittoons." (p. 208)

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Hughes' poem on Booker T.

Langston Hughes (1902-1967), known for his lyric poetry, often wrote insightful commentaries about African-American culture and race relations in the United States. In this 1941 poem he makes a case for the vindication of educator Booker T. Washington (1856-1915), the former slave and founder of Tuskegee Institute (1881) and the National Negro Business League (1900) who was harshly criticized by many people for emphasizing vocational education as the prerequisite for the political empowerment of black people. In his poem, Hughes stresses the fact that Washington wanted to train the head, the heart, and the hand. He focuses on Washington's practicality and explains the educator's strategy with the statement,
"Sometimes he had compromise in his talk--for a man must crawl before he can walkand in Alabama in '85a joker was luckyto be alive.

This simple poem says so much.I thought Booker T.Washington was a genius in his time.He had foresight that is desperately needed in today's world.Unfortunately, there was a great division of people on Booker's ideals. I think today we are seeing the results of what Booker T. was trying to prevent. Patty

"Theme for English B" by Langston Hughes

The instructor said,
Go home and write
a page tonight.
And let that page come out of you—
Then, it will be true.
I wonder if it’s that simple?
I am twenty-two, colored, born in Winston-Salem.
I went to school there, then Durham, then here
to this college on the hill above Harlem.
I am the only colored student in my class.
The steps from the hill lead down into Harlem,
through a park, then I cross St. Nicholas,
Eighth Avenue, Seventh, and I come to the Y,
the Harlem Branch Y, where I take the elevator
up to my room, sit down, and write this page:
It’s not easy to know what is true for you or me
at twenty-two, my age. But I guess I’m what
I feel and see and hear, Harlem, I hear you.
hear you, hear me—we two—you, me, talk on this page.
(I hear New York, too.) Me—who?
Well, I like to eat, sleep, drink, and be in love.
I like to work, read, learn, and understand life.
I like a pipe for a Christmas present,
or records—Bessie, bop, or Bach.
I guess being colored doesn’t make me not like
the same things other folks like who are other races.
So will my page be colored that I write?
Being me, it will not be white.
But it will be
a part of you, instructor.
You are white—
yet a part of me, as I am a part of you.
That’s American.
Sometimes perhaps you don’t want to be a part of me.
Nor do I often want to be a part of you.
But we are, that’s true!
As I learn from you,
I guess you learn from me—
although you’re older—and white—
and somewhat more free.
This is my page for English B.

Related Readings

Fernandez, Erica. “A View of Harlem Hot Spots during the Great Harlem Renaissance.” Harlem Renaissance: a portrait of culture and society. 17 Feb. 2005
"Booker T. Washington." Notable Black American Men. Gale Research, 1998.
Du Bois, W.E.B. The Souls of Black Folk. Page by Page Books. 22 Feb. 2005 http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/W_E_B_DuBois/The_Souls_of_Black_Folk/Of_Our_Spiritual_Strivings_p2.html
Fernandez, Erica. “Authors of the Harlem Renaissance.” Harlem Renaissance: a portrait of culture and society. 17 Feb. 2005

The Five Senses

Chapter 7, p. 85 Hughes writes: "You could smelll fiah, an' you could see it red, an' taste de smoke, an' feel it stingin' yo' eyes." He captures all five senses in one sentence. The beauty of it does not end there. He also captures the southern dialect with it's rythmic poectic quality. At times we see poets use omissions of letters like the "d" in and or the "g" in Stinging. It works both as a dialect and an art. This sentense transports me to many different places that I have experienced such a sensory max, however, it effectively brings me to the place that Hughes is describing as well.

Langston Hughes

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Brass Spittoons

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Hughes' poem on Booker T.

I Dream A World

"Theme for English B" by Langston Hughes

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