As I Grew Older - Langston Hughes

It was a long time ago.
I have almost forgotten my dream.
But it was there then,
In front of me,
Bright like a sun--
My dream.
And then the wall rose,
Rose slowly,
Slowly,
Between me and my dream.
Rose until it touched the sky--
The wall.
Shadow.
I am black.
I lie down in the shadow.
No longer the light of my dream before me,
Above me.
Only the thick wall.
Only the shadow.
My hands!
My dark hands!
Break through the wall!
Find my dream!
Help me to shatter this darkness,
To smash this night,
To break this shadow
Into a thousand lights of sun,
Into a thousand whirling dreams
Of sun!




Langston Hughes’ poem, “As I Grew Older” generally explains that black people cannot achieve their dreams just because of their race. In the beginning, he uses a simile, describing his dreams during his youth to being “bright like a sun”. He also uses metaphors, he describes racism, prejudice, discrimination, limited opportunities and all the things that get into his chances as the “wall” keep rising that “it touched the sky”. The term that the wall blocked out the sun, describes that it was impossible to achieve his dream. It clearly explains that when he was young and innocent, everything seemed possible to him, even achieving great things; but as he grew older, he realized the cruelty of the world, racism and discrimination would stop him from achieving his dreams. He put the term, “I lie down in the shadow” as being defeated. The only literal terms are “I am black” and “my dark hands” and they make the poem even stronger. At the end of the poem, he says, “My dark hands! Break through the Wall! Find my dream! ...Into a thousand whirling dreams”. Those terms were to command his race to rise up and achieve their dreams.