Lesson: THE MUSICAL POETRY OF LANGSTON HUGHES AND THE 12 BAR BLUES

THE MUSICAL POETRY OF LANGSTON HUGHES AND THE 12 BAR BLUES

Worksheet #1

NAME________________________

DIRECTIONS: Using the website “America’s Story from America’s Library/Writers and artists/Langston Hughes” on your computer screen, answer the following questions with your group. Be sure that all the names in your group are listed at the top of the page.

“EARLY YEARS”

1. Where was Langston Hughes Born?

2. What did his parents do for a living?

3. Describe his childhood.

4. How did Langston Hughes express his admiration for “low down folks”?

5. What was his big break and where did it happen?

“MAN OF THE PEOPLE”

1. What subjects did Langston Hughes write?

2. What kind of people most influenced his poetry.

3. What kind of music influenced Hughes and what were the songs about?

4. What did Langston Hughes believe in using his art to achieve?

5. Click on the “Ballad of Booker T. Washington” and then answer the question; “Have you ever had to compromise or change your point of view to get what you wanted?” Please explain the circumstance.

“RENAISSANCE MAN”

1. Why was Hughes considered a Renaissance man?

2. What was the Harlem Renaissance and when did it take place?

3. What else was happening in 1920? (see timeline)

4. What did Hughes say jazz and blues expressed for Black Americans?

5. How did Langston Hughes influence others?

6. How do art and music influence your life?