Langston Hughes was the most prominent African American poet of the twentieth century, a leading figure in the Harlem Renaissance, and an outspoken critic of racism and segregationist policies. In his poetry he strove to speak to, as well as for, the black masses while still making a living from his writing, which meant attracting white audiences, as well. One of his major innovations was to incorporate the African American vernacular and cultural traditions, including the rhythms of black music, into his poetry. Although the lecture circuit wearied him, he connected easily with live audiences and often read his works to the accompaniment of black musicians and singers. He may be best known as a poet, but he worked in nearly every literary genre and …show more content…
He was also a translator, an anthologist, and the author of many children's Books.
In both his youth and again in his later years, Hughes traveled widely, forging connections between American blacks and Africans and representing the culture and concerns of African Americans to the world. At the time of his youthful travels, especially in the Soviet Union and in Spain at the time of the Spanish Civil War, he was also a journalist, recording his observations for readers at home. In his later years, he was a cultural ambassador who often witnessed performances of his own works in the countries he visited. After his early poems made him one of the stars of the Harlem Renaissance, Hughes earned a degree at Lincoln University and produced a second book of poems and his first novel, Not Without Laughter. After much emotional trauma, Hughes broke free of the demands of a controlling and possessive patron and quarreled with Zora Neale Hurston over the authorship of a play they had worked on together. A liberating trip to Cuba and Haiti, his