In Langston Hughes’ poem, “Democracy, and Leonard Cohen’s poem, “Democracy”, both authors share the common theory that there should be democracy. However, the two stories have completely different perspectives. Langston Hughes wants democracy for African Americans and Leonard Cohen wants democracy for the world. Despite these differences, the two authors use their rhyme scheme, their stanza structure, and their point of view to express their demands.
In Leonard Cohen’s poem, “Democracy” Leonard Cohen’s rhyme scheme in the fourth stanza shows that change could happen, but people don’t want it. For example, in the fourth stanza of “Democracy” by Leonard Cohen, “It's coming to America first/The cradle of the best and of the worst/It’s here they got the range/And the machinery for change/And it's here they got the spiritual thirst/It’s here the family's broken/And it's here the lonely say/That the heart has got to open/In a fundamental way/Democracy is coming to the U.S.A.” In this stanza the rhyme scheme is A/A/B/B/C/D/E/D/E/F. Leonard Cohen uses this rhyme scheme so people could understand where he’s coming from better and two, it helps him emphasize on places that don’t have democracy. In his stanza structure, he uses 10 lines (Or at least in this copy) in one stanza. This not only shows that he emphasized on this stanza but it also shows that its related to one another. In the line, “ It’s here they got the range/And the machinery for change.” Leonard Cohen puts this line so he shows his point of view. I would say that he thinks that others have the chance to have Democracy, but don’t accept it. Another line that Leonard Cohen uses that proves his point is, “From the ashes of the gay.” This line shows that he is willing to give democracy for the world, even to the gays.
In Langston Hughes’ poem, “Democracy”, Langston Hughes shows his point of view through statements that are true. For example, Langston Hughes states, “I have as much right/As the other fellow has/To stand/On my two feet /And own the land.” This line not only shows his point of view, but also shows his stanza structure. This line shows his point of view because it shows how he feels underestimated from his restricted rights. Langston Hughes feels that this is unfair because the whites can do anything they want while the African Americans are controlled by them (the whites). Not only does this line show his perspective, but it also shows his stanza structure and mood. In this stanza, he uses 4 lines which shows that it is not that emphasized and it is simplified. The stanza pattern is 4/5/5/4/3 which could represent the sadness and happiness throughout his life, but this can also represent the harsh times he’s been through with his restricted rights he’s been fighting for. In addition, Langston Hughes states, “ I do not need my freedom when I’m dead.” This also supports that he is struggling to maintain/control his rights. However, in Langston Hughes’ rhyme scheme (A/B/C/D) from the first quote, it could represent that things are going his way, or not. I think the A represents his demands, B represents his response to his demands, C represents his statement of rights, and D represents his death. I would say this because during the time, not only were people being lynched, they were also ignored from time to time.
Even though both authors have completely different points of view, they both have some similarities. For example in both texts, they show both authors struggling to get their demands. As stated in both texts, “ I tire so of hearing people say, /Let things take their course./Tomorrow is another day./I do not need my freedom when I'm dead./I cannot live on tomorrow's bread.” and “I’m junk but I’m still holding up.” These lines represent that both authors are trying and trying to achieve what they/others deserve which is democracy. In Langston Hughes’ case, he is struggling because the whites have much more power and are preventing him from achieving his pursuit of happiness. However, in Leonard Cohen’s case, it shows that Leonard Cohen is still trying even though he is just one man compared to the 7 billion people on Earth.
Overall, I think these authors use their poetic devices differently but still approach for the same demand, which is democracy for all. Neither do we know if they fulfilled their wish to bring/gain democracy to the world/US, but we know that these authors faced a bunch of struggles. In the end, we know that each author used different rhyme schemes, stanza structures, and point of views but both of them wanted to achieve democracy for one/all.