Mother to Son (Langston Hughes): Theme of Perseverance and SIFT Analysis

Apuntes

• POETRY FOUNDATION **Mother to Son** BY LANGSTON HUGHES Well, son, I’ll tell you: Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair. It’s had tacks in it, And splinters, And boards torn up, And places with no carpet on the floor— Bare. But all the time I’ve been a-climbin’ on, And reachin’ landings, And turnin’ corners, And sometimes going in the dark Where there ain’t been no light. So, boy, don’t you turn back. Don’t you set down on the steps ’Cause you find it kinder hard. Don’t you fall now— For I’m still goin’, honey, I’m still climbin’, And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair. **Theme:** You must continue to persevere through hard times, and you should never give up. --- **NAME:** Maria Landin **DATE:** 10/16/2023 **PERIOD:** 5 **SIFT Literary Analysis Strategy** *Directions:* Use the table below to record examples of each of the poetic devices from the literary work. *Title:* Mother to Son *Author:* Langston Hughes | **Poetic Device** | **Examples / Explanation** | |---------------------|----------------------------| | **Symbols** | *Pink* (not applicable here), *Crystal stairs* — symbolic of a painful life; lacking ease; splinters; hard circumstances; boards torn up; hardship; n...