SongofAmericaCurriculumInitiative
http://songofamerica.net
LangstonHughesandGeography:APoetinTimeandPlace,9-12
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LangstonHughesandGeography:APoetinTimeandPlace
High(9th–12thgrade)
Timerequired:40-50minutes
Specificrecommendation:APUnitedStatesHistory
Goals/Objectives:
• Compare/contrastpointofviewintwotextsfromTheCrisis
• Identifyhowthemusicof“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers”supportsthetext
CommonCoreStandards:
• RH.11-12.7Integrateandevaluatemultiplesourcesofinformationpresentedindiverseformats
andmediainordertoaddressaquestionorsolveaproblem
• RH.11-12.1Citespecifictextualevidencetosupportanalysisofprimaryandsecondarysources,
connectinginsightsgainedfromspecificdetailstoanunderstandingofthetextasawhole.
• W.11-12.1Writeargumentstosupportclaimsinananalysisofsubstantivetopicsortexts,using
validreasoningandrelevantandsufficientevidence
Materials:
• SongofAmericaLinks
BasicMusicalElementshandout:http://songofamerica.net/for-educators/basic-musical-elements-handout
SongofAmerica“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers”songpage:
http://songofamerica.net/song/negro-speaks-of-rivers-1
SongofAmericaLangstonHughesradioprogram:http://songofamerica.net/radio/program-12
SongofAmericaLangstonHughespage:http://songofamerica.net/writer/hughes-langston
• TheCrisis,Volume22,No.2(publicdomainresource)
http://www.modjourn.org/render.php?id=1297782717453127&view=mjp_object
Instruction:
• TheteacherintroducesorreviewstheNAACPandLangstonHughes
[http://songofamerica.net/writer/hughes-langston]
• TheteacherdistributesHughes’poem“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers”
[http://songofamerica.net/song/negro-speaks-of-rivers-1]andexplainsitsappearanceinthe
NAACP’smagazineTheCrisis.Studentsreadthepoemsilentlytothemselves.
©PatriciaFinn,M.A.,SusanKey,Ph.D.&ChristieFinn,M.M.
CreatedfortheHampsongFoundation’sSongofAmericaCurriculumInitiative(http://songofamerica.net/for-educators)
Thislessonplanmaybeusedfreeofchargeforeducationalpurposes.
Pleasereferencethecreatorsofthehandout,theHampsongFoundationandSongofAmericawhennecessary.
Formoreinformation,pleasevisithttp://songofamerica.net/&http://hampsongfoundation.org/
SongofAmericaCurriculumInitiative
http://songofamerica.net
LangstonHughesandGeography:APoetinTimeandPlace,9-12
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Studentslistento“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers”inamusicalsettingbyMargaretBonds
[http://songofamerica.net/radio/program-12at2:29,or1:37withThomasHampson
introduction—thissamerecordingisalsoavailableon“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers”songpage
http://songofamerica.net/song/negro-speaks-of-rivers-1]
Theteacherbeginsclassdiscussionbyasking,“Whatdidyounoticeaboutthesinger’svoice?
Howdoesthesinger’svoiceandthewayhesingsreflectthetext?”Studentsmayfirstdiscuss
thesequestionswithapartnerbeforetheclassdiscussion.Theclassdiscussesthevolume,
speed,andotherelementsofthemusic.
o RefertotheSongofAmericaBasicMusicalElementshandoutforaneasyguideto
talkingaboutmusic:
http://songofamerica.net/for-educators/basic-musical-elements-handout
ConsiderthediscussionquestionssuggestedbytheAcademyofAmericanPoets
[https://www.poets.org/sites/default/files/images/GuideToHughes.pdf]—theteachermaywrite
discussionquestionsontheboardorshowviaprojector(aworldmapcouldalsobehelpfulin
thisdiscussion):
o “Inthepoem‘TheNegroSpeaksofRivers,’fourriversarenamed:theEuphrates,the
Congo,theNile,andtheMississippi.
§ Whatspecialsignificancedothesefourrivershaveintermsofcreatingthe
worldofthepoem?
§ Whathistoricalorculturalworldsdotheyhelpusimagine?
§ Howisthehistoryofhumanityrelatedtothehistoryofanindividualmaninthis
poem?”
o Relatethesequestionstothemusic:
§ Howdoesthemusicchangewiththenamingofeachriver,andthentellusthe
storyofeachoftheseplacesandpeople?
§ Howcanwebetterunderstandtheseriversandthepeopleassociatedwith
themthroughthemusicofthissong?
§ Whatisyourunderstandingoftheseriversbecauseofthemusic,orwhat
mentalimagescometomind?
•
•
Listentothesongagainwiththespecificdiscussionquestionsaboveinmind.Studentsshould
takenotesontheircopiesofthepoem.
Theclassthendiscussestheaforementionedquestionsaswellasthefollowing:“Whatis
LangstonHughes’messageinthispoem?Whatwashappeningatthetimethatwouldhave
inspiredhimtowritethepoem?Whatdotheinternationalriversofthepoemhavetodowith
HughesandhissenseofselfasayoungBlackmaninAmerica?”
©PatriciaFinn,M.A.,SusanKey,Ph.D.&ChristieFinn,M.M.
CreatedfortheHampsongFoundation’sSongofAmericaCurriculumInitiative(http://songofamerica.net/for-educators)
Thislessonplanmaybeusedfreeofchargeforeducationalpurposes.
Pleasereferencethecreatorsofthehandout,theHampsongFoundationandSongofAmericawhennecessary.
Formoreinformation,pleasevisithttp://songofamerica.net/&http://hampsongfoundation.org/
SongofAmericaCurriculumInitiative
http://songofamerica.net
LangstonHughesandGeography:APoetinTimeandPlace,9-12
•
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GuidedPractice
o TheteacherdistributescopiesofTheCrisis,Volume22,No.2,pgs.60-64,whichincludes
bookreviewsfrom1921
[http://www.modjourn.org/render.php?id=1297782717453127&view=mjp_object
http://library.brown.edu/pdfs/1297783201359379.pdf]
o AstudentvolunteerreadsaloudthefirstbookreviewforthebookTheSoulofJohn
Brown
o Anotherstudentvolunteerreadsaloud“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers”
o TheteacherdrawsattentiontospecificlinesoftextwithinthebookreviewofTheSoul
ofJohnBrownthatconnecttoLangstonHughes’poem
§ Forinstance:“InGeorgia,hetrampedtheactualroadfrom‘AtlantatoSea,’to
beabletocontrastthemodernconditionsofex-slaveswiththoseof60years
ago”(61).ThisexcerptfromTheCrisisbookreviewreflectstheauthor’sinterest
intracingtheconditionsandheritageofBlacks,similartoHughes’reflectionof
Blackheritageandroots.]
•
IndependentPractice
o Theclassisdividedintofivegroupswitheachgroupassignedadifferentbookreview:
§ TwoColoredWomenWiththeA.E.F.(HuntonandJohnson)
§ FindingaWayOut(Moton)
§ Africa:SlaveorFree?(Harris)
§ TheBantu—PastandPresent(Molema)
§ SongsandTalesfromtheDarkContinent(Curtis)
o Studentsfirstreadthebookreviewsilentlytothemselvesandthenonememberreads
aloudthebookreview
o Studentsidentifyandtakenoteofspecificlinesfromthebookreviewthateitherreflect
orrejectHughes’messagein“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers”
o Groupstaketurnsfirstverballysummarizingtheirbookreviewandthenstatingthe
comparisonsorcontraststoHughes’poem
Assessment:
Studentsanswerthequestion:“DidLangstonHughesmirrortheotherwritersofhisday?”inaoneparagraphresponse,usingtextualevidencefromonebookreviewand“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers.”
Theresponsecouldbehomeworkthatbeginsthefollowingday’sdiscussion.
GoingFurther:
In1926,fiveyearsafterthepublication“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers,”LangstonHughespublishedhis
essay“TheNegroArtistandtheRacialMountain”whilehewasstillincollegeatLincolnUniversity.This
essaywouldhaveanimportantinfluenceonhislaterwriting,includinghispoem“Prayer[2],”published
in1931.ThisactivitycomparesandcontrastsLangstonHughes’swritingovera10-yearperiod,explores
thedevelopmentofhispoint-of-view,andhowthatpointofviewisreflectedandemphasizedinmusical
settings.
©PatriciaFinn,M.A.,SusanKey,Ph.D.&ChristieFinn,M.M.
CreatedfortheHampsongFoundation’sSongofAmericaCurriculumInitiative(http://songofamerica.net/for-educators)
Thislessonplanmaybeusedfreeofchargeforeducationalpurposes.
Pleasereferencethecreatorsofthehandout,theHampsongFoundationandSongofAmericawhennecessary.
Formoreinformation,pleasevisithttp://songofamerica.net/&http://hampsongfoundation.org/
SongofAmericaCurriculumInitiative
http://songofamerica.net
LangstonHughesandGeography:APoetinTimeandPlace,9-12
•
StudentsreadHughes’s“TheNegroArtistandtheRacialMountain”outloudinPage4of4class
(ifthereistime),orthisessayisassignedashomework.
http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/g_l/hughes/mountain.htm
•
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Inclass,theteacherdistributesHughes’poem“Prayer[2],”titled“Litany”inJohnMusto’ssong
setting[http://songofamerica.net/song/litany-1].Studentsreadthepoemsilentlyto
themselvesandthenlistentoMusto’smusicalsettingofthatpoem
[http://songofamerica.net/radio/program-12at44:30,or44:07withThomasHampson
introduction]
o Whencomparingwith“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers,”itmaybehelpfultoplaythe
recordingofthissongand/orreadthepoemaloudagain.
Somediscussionquestionscouldinclude:
o WhatisHughes’sthesisinhisessay?Whoishisaudience?
o HowdoHughes’sviewsasstatedinhisessayreflectedinhispoetry?Istheaudiencethe
samefortheessayandthepoetry?
o Isthereadifferenceintonebetween“TheNegroSpeaksofRivers”and“Prayer[2]”
(“Litany”),orarethetwopoemsdevelopingthesameidea?DidHughes’sviewsshiftor
changeinanidentifiablewaybetweenthetwopoems?
o MargaretBondswasacontemporaryandfriendofLangstonHughes;JohnMustoisa
livingcomposerwhonevermetHughes.Howdobothofthesecomposersunderstand
themeaningofHughes’smessageinsettinghiswordstomusic?Identifyspecific
examplesinthesongs,ifpossible.
o HowdoesHughes'descriptionofcontrastingracialidentitiesintheUnitedStates,along
withthemessagesofthesetwopoems,connectwitheventsoccurringduringthe1920s,
bothpoliticallyandculturally?(Thiscouldbeawrittenassignment.)
•
Hughes’sessaycouldbecomparedtootheressaysofthetimeonthesametopic:
http://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/pds/maai3/community/text5/text5read.htm
©PatriciaFinn,M.A.,SusanKey,Ph.D.&ChristieFinn,M.M.
CreatedfortheHampsongFoundation’sSongofAmericaCurriculumInitiative(http://songofamerica.net/for-educators)
Thislessonplanmaybeusedfreeofchargeforeducationalpurposes.
Pleasereferencethecreatorsofthehandout,theHampsongFoundationandSongofAmericawhennecessary.
Formoreinformation,pleasevisithttp://songofamerica.net/&http://hampsongfoundation.org/