Popular Poem: Georgia Dusk

J ames Mercer Langston Hughes narrated a poem entitling Georgia Dusk. The poem is about sorrow. This is obviously shown from the words chosen by Hughes. He used words that mostly express sad and sorrowful. The message of this poem is not clearly described. However, it seems that Hughes tries to convince us that we should be aware of our surroundings. The poem is suitable for Junior High School students. Some words may be too difficult for them, so it depends on the teacher to guide them comprehending the poem.

 Georgia Dusk

By Langston Hughes

Sometimes there’s a wind in the Georgia dusk

That cries and cries and cries

Its lonely pity through the Georgia dusk

Veiling what the darkness hides

Sometimes there’s blood in the Georgia dusk

Left by a streak of sun

A crimson trickle in the Georgia dusk

Whose Blood? …Everyone’s

Sometimes a wind in the Georgia dusk

Scatters hate like seed

To sprout its bitter barriers

Where the sunsets bleed

1.  Poetic Devices

     a. Georgia Dusk consists of three stanzas in which each stanza has four lines called quatrain. The stanzaic rhyme scheme is a-b-a-b except for the last stanza which is rhymed a-b-c-b.

     b. In this poem, Hughes uses repetition as in “Sometimes” and “Georgia dusk”. These words are repeated and put in the same structure. The word “Sometimes” is repeated three times and put at the beginning of each stanza. While “Georgia dusk” is repeated five times and put at the end of line 1 of each stanza and also at the end of line 3 in the first and second stanza.

     c. Hughes also uses comparison in this poem. The comparison used in his poem is personification and simile. We can find them in the first and the last stanza.

     d. The personification employed by Hughes are:

         Sometimes there’s a wind in the Georgia dusk

         That cries and cries and cries

         (stanza 1)

     e. Here Hughes gives human qualities to wind that can cry like human being. He chooses the word “cries” instead of “blows” to give an impression to the readers that the wind tries to convey the sadness in Georgia.

         Its lonely pity through the Georgia dusk

         (stanza 1 line 3)

     f.  Hughes also gives another human’s character to the wind. He describes that the wind also can feel lonely like human being.

         Where the sunset bleed

         (stanza 3 line 4)

     g. Sunset is also assumed as an animate that can bleed. Hughes uses the word “bleed” to describe the red color left by the sun at dusk.

     h. Meanwhile, Hughes only uses one simile that can be found in the last stanza.

         Scatters hate like seed

         (stanza 3 line 2)

2. Poetic Diction

     a. The words used in this poem mostly have denotative meaning. However, Hughes uses some connotations such as cries and blood. Cries refers to the sound of the wind and blood refers to the color of the sunset. Both represents sadness.       

     b. Beside personification and simile, Hughes uses another figurative language that is Hyperbole as we can see in stanza 3 line 2

         Scatters hate like seed

     c. The sentence is exaggerated to show the great number of hate that is scattered by the wind.

3. Tone

    The tone is gloomy. It can be seen from the words used by Hughes. He chooses the words cries, lonely pity, blood, and hate that express sadness. Hughes tries to tell that the people of Georgia were in suffering because of the slavery.

4. Symbol

    The symbol of this poem is dusk. It symbolizes the sadness

5. Point of View

    This poem can be seen from the point of view of  speaker who acts as an observer who aware about his surroundings.

Analyzed by Happy Kusuma Wardani, an English Teacher

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