A Stylistic Analysis of Langston Hughes Cedric Dent, Jr. College

Langston Hughes is a classic American author whose writing style is, perhaps, one of the most malleable styles in the history of American literature. In the first place, he is among the exclusive echelon of writers to oscillate back and forth in his works between poetry and prose, being so well accomplished in both forms. Beyond this, though, he alters his style in either arena rather often in order to make a formal point; that is, the form and style of his writing is usually different from piece to piece because his writing style is always a tool used to create a motif that communicates substance critical to the work’s purpose. Two stories from The Ways of White Folks more than adequately exemplify just how much his writing style can morph from work to work, and they also highlight how Hughes uses these stylistic changes.

Langston Hughes writes “Red-Headed Baby” about a white seaman named Clarence who sails into the port of a Black town in the south and looks up a Black girl named Betsy with whom he once had sex. He has every intention of having sex with her again, but he discovers a two-year-old at the girl’s house that has the same red hair he has. He finds himself unable to handle the realization that he has a colored son,...