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I’ve known rivers:
I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow
…………of human blood in human veins.
I’ve known rivers:I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow
…………of human blood in human veins.
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I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.
I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.
I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.
I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went
…………down to New Orleans, and I’ve seen its muddy bosom
…………turn all golden in the sunset.
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I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.
I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.
I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went
…………down to New Orleans, and I’ve seen its muddy bosom
…………turn all golden in the sunset.
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In this poem Langston Hughes speaks of the human world from the beginning of its civilization until the time the poem was written. In the beginning of the poem he does not mention about his African American heritage or any other cultural background, instead he talks about humans as being one thing. “I’ve known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins” blood is common among all people and the main idea of this poem is unity. “My soul has grown deep like the rivers” in this line I think he wants to tell us that, after thousands of years of human civilization knowledge has increased for mankind. He also uses long lines that start with “I” that reminds me of Walt Whitman.
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I would agree with Georgios that this poem is about the unity of mankind. In the poem Hughes speaks of different civilizations throughout history, such as Ancient Egypt, and says that he is connected to the people in each of them purely due to the fact that he is human. He doesn’t specify race or religion, but lumps humans together as one. I would also agree that the line, “My soul has grown deep like the rivers” is referring to the increase in the depth of knowledge of mankind throughout history.
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From the early stanza, the poem creates understanding of where our roots and origins come into existence. “My soul has grown deep like the rivers”- basically compares rivers to souls of humans. The poem explains how the rivers provide life support to trees, it also is similar to souls, which is never ending. It is important to understand that “I” refers to thousands of people from the past to the present (example-”I bathed in the Euphrates….it lulled me to sleep”. As long the rivers and roots of the trees have been present, “I” refers to human race that has lived through all these times.
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From the early stanza, the poem creates understanding of where our roots and origins come into existence. It refers to the audience of what the human race has gone through in the world.
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