The Compassionate Message of "Mother to Son"

As I was browsing through my daily dose of poetry, I came across a touching poem that most everybody can relate to - Mother to Son. The poem progresses through the viewpoint of a mother, warning her son of the troubles he may encounter in the future, leaving hints of love here and there. This poem was an instant success, in part due to its relatability, but also due to Langston Hughe’s poetry magic. Today, I’ll going over this dramatic monologue, and breaking every hidden detail down piece by piece.

Long Story Short

James Mercer Langston Hughes was born on February 1st, 1901. He grew up in the Midwest a bright child, being his class’s poet and writing for his Cleveland school’s newspaper. To pursue his career, he moved to New York City, where he studied at Columbia University. Albeit he dropped out of the school shortly, he obtained some attention from the Crisis Magazine and from some fellow book publishers in the area. Hughes was quickly known to the creative community.

In the 1920s, around the same time he met the creative parts of New York City, Hughes graduated from Lincoln University while working several odd jobs, and published his first poetry collection, "The Weary Blues.” It introduced a new form of poetry, called jazz poetry, poetry because of how (forgive the joke) the poems are music to my ears! This collection was published in the peak of the Harlem Renaissance, which can help explain why his poetry immediately caught on like wildfire. Out these poems, “Mother to Son” is one of the most prominent.

For the rest of his life, Hughes worked as a civil rights activist and as a prolific writer and poet. On his first novel, “Not Without Laughter”, He won a Harmon Gold Medal. Around the age of 66 Hughes died a critically acclaimed author and poet due to prostate cancer.

The Writing

The writing in this piece of poetry is relatively easier to understand. In the first 5 verses of the poem the mother talks to her son about how ‘Life isn’t crystal stair’, and has many tacks, splinters, boards torn up, and places with no carpet. Simply put, she is talking about how life isn’t easy. Over the next few verses, she talks about how no matter what obstacles came at her, she overcame it, giving off a hint of positivity.

I’se been a-climbin’ on,

And reachin’ landin’s,

And turnin’ corners,

And sometimes goin’ in the dark

Where there ain’t been no light.

Finally she shows her motherly love by warning her child to bear through these obstacles that she did before, and therefore be successful in life. To add some extra emotion Hughes uses repetition in the line, “And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.”

The Theme

The theme is pretty straightforward. It encourages us to not succumb to obstacles in times of hardship, and tells us that overcoming this tacks and splinters in life would be rewarded with success.

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Disclaimer: Remember, this is just my opinion and what I think of a piece after gathering research and writing it down.

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