“I, Too" Video

In Langston Hughes’ poem, “I, Too,” the speaker is an African American man—either a slave, a free man in the Jim Crow South, or even a domestic servant. The poem is written in free verse, featuring short lines and simple language.

The poem begins with the famous line, “I, too, sing America,” declaring the speaker’s right to claim an American identity as his own. The speaker then identifies himself as “the darker brother,” who cannot sit at the table and must eat in the kitchen. This alludes to the common practice of racial segregation during the early 20th century, when African-Americans faced discrimination in nearly every aspect of their lives. They were forced to live, work, eat and travel separately from their white counterparts, had few civil or legal rights, were often victims of racial violence, and faced economic marginalization.

The third stanza begins with the word “Tomorrow” and shifts to a hopeful tone. Refusing to languish in despair, the speaker proclaims that "tomorrow" he will join the others at the table and no one will dare send him back to the kitchen. Not only that, but the "others" will see “how beautiful” the speaker is and will therefore feel “ashamed.” With this profound optimism, the speaker demonstrates a heightened sense of self and proclaims his ambition to assert his legitimacy as an American citizen and as a man.

"I, Too" is a revision-ing of Walt Whitman’s poem, “I Hear America Singing.” In Whitman’s poem, a variety of Americans—including a mechanic, carpenter, boatman, and mother—sing joyfully about America. Hughes echoes Whitman most directly in his first and last lines: “I, too, sing America” and “I, too, am America,” both of which are declarations of inclusion, stating that this national identity belongs to Black Americans as much as it does to Whites.

In this way, Hughes allows his readers to envision a racially equal society in the near future.