What are the themes in Theme for English B?

Race, Identity, and Belonging. “Theme for English B” is a poem about the complexities of identity in a racist society. Its speaker—a black student at Columbia University in the 1950s—receives an apparently straightforward assignment: to write one page about himself.

What is the narrator struggling with in Theme for English B?

”Theme for English B” by Langston Hughes In the poem, the narrator struggles with what it is like to be African-American in a world where African-Americans were seen as minorities and second-class citizens. Although it is a fictional piece, it could very much be about Hughes’ own life.

What is the rhyme scheme for Theme for English B?

“Theme for English B” is written in free verse—it stays the track of no one rhythmic pattern; it has no regular rhyme scheme. It does, however, establish patterns. The instructor’s homework assignment, for instance, is in an aabb rhyme pattern.

What is the tone of Theme for English B?

At the beginning of “Theme for English B,” the speaker uses an uncertain, questioning tone to describe the teacher’s assignment to write a page about himself, asking if he can really produce something “true” since he’s so different from the other students.

What literary devices are used in Theme for English B?

Analysis of Literary Devices Used in “Theme for English B” literary devices such as similes, personifications, and metaphors are very important elements of a literary text. They bring richness to the text and help the readers understand the hidden meanings.

How is personification used in Theme for English B?

The lines “Harlem, I hear you: hear you, hear me—we two—you, me, talk on this page” show personification because a city cannot actually hear someone. The line “Bessie, bop, or Bach” show both alliteration and allusion because it repeats the ‘b’ sound and it refers to two musical artists.

What metaphors are in Theme for English B?

The speaker comes to understand in the last lines of ‘Theme for English B’that there are different parts of himself that are all important in their own way. The page he writes, a metaphor for the life he is going to live, will be influenced by “you, instructor”.

What are the literary devices in the poem Theme for English B?

Analysis of Literary Devices Used in “Theme for English B” literary devices such as similes, personifications, and metaphors are very important elements of a literary text.

Is theme a literary device?

Of course, theme is an essential literary device in terms of written works. However, nearly all works of art feature theme as an underlying meaning to be understood and interpreted by the audience.

Is irony a literary device?

The definition of irony as a literary device is a situation in which there is a contrast between expectation and reality. For example, the difference between what something appears to mean versus its literal meaning. Irony is associated with both tragedy and humor.