Beat the drums of tragedy for me. Beat the drums of tragedy and death. And let the choir sing a stormy song To drown the rattle of my dying breath.
Beat the drums of tragedy for me, And let the white violins whir thin and slow, But blow one blaring trumpet note of sun To go with me to the darkness where I go.
To fling my arms wide In some place of the sun, To whirl and to dance Till the white day is done. Then rest at cool evening Beneath a tall tree While night comes on gently, Dark like me,-- That is my dream!
To fling my arms wide In the face of the sun, Dance! whirl! whirl! Till the quick day is done. Rest at pale evening.... A tall, slim tree.... Night coming tenderly Black like me.
I’ve known rivers: I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins.
My soul has grown deep like the rivers.
I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young. I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep. I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it. I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went down to New Orleans, and I’ve seen its muddy bosom turn all golden in the sunset.
I’ve known rivers: Ancient, dusky rivers.
My soul has grown deep like the rivers.
The night is beautiful, So the faces of my people.
The stars are beautiful, So the eyes of my people.
Beautiful, also, is the sun. Beautiful, also, are the souls of my people.
The calm, Cool face of the river Asked me for a kiss.
Langston Hughes (1902–1967) was an American poet, novelist, playwright, and columnist born in Joplin, Missouri. He was active during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s. His poetry often drew on the rhythms of blues and jazz and used vernacular speech to portray working-class African American experience. Common themes included racial pride, resilience, and the realities of segregation and economic hardship. He published his first collection, The Weary Blues, in 1926. Later works such as Montage of a Dream Deferred (1951) extended his use of jazz forms and addressed postwar urban life. He also wrote fiction, essays, and the popular "Simple" stories featuring the character Jesse B. Semple. Through his prolific output and engagement with social issues, he became a widely read American poet of the twentieth century.
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