Why, You Reckon Essay - 759 Words

Harlem Renaissance Works Langston Hughes was an African-American writer in the 1920s. He was best known for his stories in the Harlem Renaissance about the Black Culture. Hughes emphasized the theme that â€Å"Black is Beautiful.† In Hughes short story, â€Å"Why, You Reckon,† he writes through the main character, the narrator, a poor, hongry Black. Hughes uses character and scene description, symbolism, themes, and dialogue to set his story up and make it more interesting and historical to the reader. In â€Å"Why, You Reckon,† Hughes establishes a setting through direct characterization and word choice. In the beginning, the narrator says, â€Å"Depression times before the war plants opened up and money got to circulating again and that Second†¦show more content†¦Wealth is a symbol because the two Black men think of wealth as security, not being hungry anymore, warmth, and HAPPINESS.† But wealth is a two-way street. The white man, Edward, thinks of wealth as something to waste, and UNHAPPINESS. The different view of wealth from the Edward and the narrator ties into the main theme of the story: People are never satisfied with what they have. This was shown throughout the story with the symbol of wealth. Some other themes in this story is â€Å"lack of power and desperation leads to violence. This theme is shown when the narrator and the other Black Man decide to nab the first white man that â€Å"looks like bucks.† They are powerless, no money, starving—they resorted to violence because of it. Another theme that takes place in this story is money does not buy happiness. Neither the narrator nor Edward are happy. One is rich, the other, is dirt poor. A big theme in this story that applies to a lot of history is that by breaking the law and envying the rich there will still be one left empty handed. Whether it is something small like robbing a rich person or something big by overruling a government there is still going to be someone who is not benefiting. Even i f it is for a good cause. Dialogue was important to this story as well. But one line was so important to the story that it made the title. â€Å"What do you suppose is the matter with rich white folks? Why you reckon they aint happy?† The meaning to this phrase startedShow MoreRelatedStrategic Information Systems : Australian Accounting Software963 Words   |  4 Pages4 Absence of precision 4 Recommendations and suggestions 5 Bibliography 6 Introduction Reckon accounting software is well recognized as the most affordable cloud accounting software in Australia. Through the interface of the payment process of the platform (Reckon Pay) you can accept payments by credit / debit card via your phone. For companies that perform Australia point of sale (POS) transactions, Reckon provides a system of point of sale complete and detailed that connects sales transactionsRead MoreWhat Can You Know About Ham Sandwiches, And The Correspondent853 Words   |  4 Pagesoiler and the correspondent, agitatedly. â€Å"Don’t talk about those things, blast you!† â€Å"Well,† said the cook, â€Å"I was just thinking about ham sandwiches, and – â€Å" â€Å"How ‘bout you stop thinking about food,† said the correspondent, â€Å"and start thinking ‘bout what you’ve done.† â€Å"I only told you about it ‘coz I thought we were dying. With the house of refuge comin’ up an’ all, that doesn’t seem as likely an occurrence. Can’t you just†¦forget about it?† â€Å"Forget about it? I’m not likely to ever forget aboutRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain Essay1492 Words   |  6 PagesHow to Be a Hypocrite for Dummies INTRODUCTION: Quote/Lead: Look at â€Å"Post-It† notes. Don’t forget to cite! (1-3 sentences) – William Shakespeare once said, â€Å"God has given you one face, and you make yourself another†. TAG (Title, author, genre): The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain, satire full of adventure Context/Background: The story follows a teenager boy as he sets off on an adventure with Jim, a runaway slave. Together, they overcome a variety of obstacles and experience whatRead MoreScarlet Letter Discrimination Essay922 Words   |  4 Pagesraces which is given irrationally and causes a harm full impact for them. Through this statement, Hester indirectly shows us the form of discrimination toward African-American as follows: â€Å"....Reckon they’ll try him for murder?† â€Å"Manslaughter, I should think† â€Å"Oh.† Hester was disappointed. â€Å"Yes, I reckon that’s right. He didn’t mean to do it.† â€Å"No, he didn’t mean to do it.† Hester laughed. â€Å"And I thought we’d have some excitement.† Hester was saying, â€Å"—hasn’t been a good trial around here in tenRead MoreThe Adentures of Huckleberry Finn1524 Words   |  7 Pagesetc., shown by when he states that Miss Watson would say, Dont put your feet up there, Huckleberry; and Dont scrunch up like that, Huckleberry—set up straight; and pretty soon she would say, Dont gap and stretch like that, Huckleberry—why dont you try to behave? Then she told me all about the bad place, and I said I wished I was there. She got mad then, but I didnt mean no harm. All I wanted was to go somewheres; all I wanted was a change, I warnt particular. Well, I couldnt see no advantageRead MoreGender Inequality in India in Brain Caswell ´s The Best Boots in the World1255 Words   |  5 Pagesdon’t think a wimp like you deserves a pair of boots like these, I think I do† . This sentence is used by the youth to introduce us his thoughts in depth by the use of dialogue. The main character changed emotionally within the text by the circumstances that the author had created for him. The author has used character development to change the characters over the course of the story. One example of character development is when Mikey says â€Å"They’re just boots. Something you wear on your feet† . AtRead MoreThe Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain1335 Words   |  6 PagesShepherdsons. No one in either family can remember why or how this feud started, but they continue killing each other nonetheless. When Huck asks the Grangerford’s boy, Buck, how long this has been going on, Buck replies, â€Å" Well I should reckon! It started thirty year ago, or som’ers along there. There was trouble ‘bout something and then a lawsuit to settle it; and the suit went agin of the men, and so he up and shot the man that won that suit†¦ I reckon maybe- I don’t know†¦ Laws, how do I know? It wasRead MorePrejudice And The Dark Abyss Of Prejudice By Harper Lee1297 Words   |  6 Pagesunderstanding of prejudice in the following quote, â€Å"(Courage is) when you know you licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win but sometimes you do† (116). Atticus knew from the onset that because Tom Robinson was a negro, his trial would not be fair. He understood that taking this case would decrease his integrity, especially if he actually tried to win, which he did. People questioned why he would do such a thing as to defend the man who was portrayedRead MoreThe Aboriginals Essay1071 Words   |  5 Pagespowerless against the oppressing white society Jimmy continues to treat the white authority with contempt, voicing the discrimination he feels: â€Å"You reckon blackfellas are bloody mugs. Whole town knows why we’re goin. ‘Coz Wetjalas in this town don’t want us’ ere, don’t want our kids at the school, with their kids, and old Jimmy Mitchell’s tight’ coz they reckon Bert ‘Awke’s gonna give him a hidin’ in the election.† This illustrates the animosity towards Aboriginals throughout white society, through JimmyRead MoreAnalysis Of Mark Twain s Adventures Of Tom Sawyer1273 Words   |  6 Pagesunited nation. First, sepulchral imagery plays a significant role in characterizing the children. In the following passage Twain mentions: Why, you take your cat and go and get in the graveyard ‘long about midnight when somebody that was wicked has been buried; and when it’s midnight a devil will come, or maybe two or three, but you can’t see’em, you can only hear something like the wind, or maybe hear ‘em and say†¦(45) After this Huck and Tom goes to the graveyard at midnight, where they first