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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Excellent Read, April 6, 2005
This review is from: The Life of Langston Hughes: Volume I: 1902-1941, I, Too, Sing America (Life of Langston Hughes, 1902-1941) (Paperback)
Long before the advent of the 1960's motto of black pride and black beauty, there was Langston Hughes who championed and celebrated black pride and black beauty, both African and black American, at the height racial inequality in the United States.
The two definitive biographies of Langston Hughes are written by Faith Berry, LANGSTON HUGHES: BEFORE AND BEYOND HARLEM, and, the two by Arnold Rampersad's, THE LIFE OF LANGSTON HUGHES VOLS. 1 AND 2. For those able to do it, I would recommend reading Berry's biography first and then DEFINITLY follow it by reading Rampersad two exquisite biographies of Hughes. Reading the two is the only real way to get a complete and accurate picture of Langston Hughes. Both books briefly address Hughes family background which isn't unique to him alone in the black American community as those non-persons of African decent on the outside repeatedly fail to understand. Both books address Hughes' humanity despite of the racism he faced as an extremely confident and proud African-American. Both acknowledge Hughes dislike of those blacks like Toomer ashamed of being black and their African heritage. Both reveal his living through all the moments in early 20th century American history like the Harlem Renaissance and meeting and befriending such figures as Dubois and facing McCarthy on charges of communism while punctuated moments of his life with wanderlust in world travels. Both books address the obstacles and triumphs he faced as being only the second black American to earn a living by writing , the first being Paul Lawrence Dunbar who was also Hughes idol and influence alongside Whitman and Sandburg. Both books take care to explain how Hughes relationships with his parents and grandmother may have shadowed his other relationships in terms of his race pride and the half hearted and insincere assignations with women he was linked to.
Where the two books differ is in discussing Hughes being gay. Berry appears unbridled by prejudice in acknowledging use as gay. Rampersad, a conservative black scholar and now part executor of the Hughes estate, is too eagerly fulsome in his attempts to deny Hughes being gay along with the coded references Hughes used to describe his affections for black men in poems which are similar to those used by Whitman in describing his same sex interest. This dangerously borders the homophobic line. (** READ the recent appendix in Rampersad biography where he rightfully takes issue with being called homophobic by his critics.**) This has been the chief criticism by many of Rampersad two biographies of Hughes. The great irony is that Rampersad actually confirms Hughes being gay by indicating the price Hughes would have paid if he was openly identified as gay at the wrong time in history (even in some circles of the black community today for that matter). Plus, in volume 2 of the LIFE OF HUGHES, Rampersad is less virulent in denying Hughes being gay and pretty much comes close to acknowledging him being gay but holds back for reasons of
his own.
Moreover, Berry discusses Hughes in a straight foreword manner. Rampersad biography is almost lyrical in its historical documentation of Hughes life like a number of biographies being written these days by certain scholars. Rampersad goes into great psychological analysis of Hughes and barring certain before mentioned instances gets it right.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
No Longer Afraid of Research, July 5, 2009
This review is from: The Life of Langston Hughes: Volume I: 1902-1941, I, Too, Sing America (Life of Langston Hughes, 1902-1941) (Paperback)
I learned that research can be used as a blessing and a way of connecting readers to life sustaining knowledge. Thank you Professor Rampersad for writing this book! Now I know what a great American Langston Hughes was and why he had so much influence over other writers such as Alice Walker, Ralph Ellison, and Arna Bontemps, Claude Mckay, Dorothy West, and too many more to list.
Hughes was a world traveler and activist in addition to being a innovative writer of poems, essays, plays, and fiction, and a very respected member of the Harlem Renaissance of literature.
He travelled to Russia, Italy, Germany, West Africa, and Cuba while he was poor, young and colored. Hughes lived in Mexico and Paris, Harlem and San Franscisco. He was a correspondent during the Spanish Civil War and personally knew many of the influential artists of his day.
Langston Hughes struggled to figure out if his work should be commercial or radical. He made some mistakes in his judgement of people and politics along the way, but somehow he always recovered. Unfortunately Hughes never did have much money despite all the work he contributed to the American canon, but he lived a magnificent, rich and full life.
What an outstanding American! I think this book should be required reading for all high schoolers. I cannot wait to read Volume II.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rampersad at his best!!, September 27, 2004
This is the most complete writing on Hughes' life. Beautifully written yet very thorough. Arnold Rampersad is probably the most talented biographer alive.
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