Courtney Amick

Mrs. Carter
AP Literature and Composition
9 March 2014
Whats Black and White and Judged All Over?
Cross by Langston Hughes
My old mans a white old man 1
And my old mothers black.
If I ever cursed my white old man
I take my curses back.

If I ever cursed my black old mother 5
And wished she were in hell,
Im sorry for that evil wish
And now I wish her well.

My old man died in a fine big house.
My ma died in a shack. 10
I wonder where Im gonna die,
Being neither white nor black?


Langston Hughes expresses his discontent at not being truly considered white or black in
his poem Cross. A culmination of a multitude of literary elements such as denotation and
connotation of words as well as imagery combine to reveal his theme.
The title itself, Cross, holds several connotations. The author, first of all, is a cross of
races. He is an mix of Caucasian and African American. It can be inferred that his mother was
possibly a slave and his father her master, and that Hughes was a product of master taking
Amick 2

advantage of his property. This inference is further supported when he mentions his father
died in a big fine house (9) and his mother died in a shack (10). The juxtaposition of those
two places of death suggests a large class division, regardless of race, between his mother and
his father. His mother was clearly much lower on the socioeconomic scale than his father.
The second connotation of Cross would be his feelings of anger, i.e. being cross,
towards his parents. He is angered by the fact that he is not definitively one race. He expresses
this when he asks in the end I wonder where Im gonna die, being neither white nor black?
(11-12). Because of his mixed race, he does not know what path to take in life and how to
identify himself.
The third connotation implies that his mixed race heritage gives him a heavy cross to
bear. Every day he must face the fact that he does not belong to one particular race. In the time
that Hughes wrote the poem, racism was rampant in the United States. His mixed racial
heritage was a source of scandal. His cross to bear stemmed from the judgments of others.
There are additional connotations in the repeated words white and black. When
considered with their denotations, they are simply referring to the color of ones skin. White is
referencing Caucasian and black is referencing African American. However, in consideration of
the period in which the poem was written, their connotations suggest white meaning purity
and black meaning impurity. This obvious juxtaposition furthers the divide between his parents.
It is no longer a matter of race or socioeconomic status, but one of pure holiness versus evil and
sinfulness. In 1926 when the poem was written, these connotations would have been
recognized. Whites were considered pure and supreme, while blacks were considered dirty and
Amick 3

unnatural. Because Hughes is both white and black, it is not clear whether he is to be
considered pure or impure; affluent or poor; respected or scorned.
The colloquial nature of the language expressed in the poem serves to represent that
Hughes is simply expressing his thoughts on his mixed race. He is not pondering the
complexities of his situation, but more wondering what path he is to take because he is left
without a clear identity. This simplistic, yet informative language allows the author to reveal his
meaning and purpose through very few words. These words also provide imagery that serve to
show the cavernous divide between his fathers situation and his mothers. White old man (1)
and fine big house (9) provide a picture of wealth and affluence. Black old mother, (5)
ma, (6) hell, (10) and shack (10) all provide images of darkness, lack of education and
poverty.
The first ten lines cite his predicament and his struggle to release his blame towards his
parents. He does this through recanting his wishes of evil and curses upon his mother and
father. He knows that it is not their fault that society judges him for his racial heritage and says
I take my curses back (4) and now I wish her well (8). The last two lines provide his
statement of resolution and reveal the theme in the form of a question. The whole poem is
centered on the fact that he is frustrated over being caught in the center between two races
and he does not know in which direction to be led or how to identify himself.
A combination of literary elements serves to reveal Langston Hughess discontent over
his lack of racial definition. He is neither white nor black and, by connotations of the time
Amick 4

period, neither pure nor impure. He questions where he belongs in society and how he will
make that decision throughout his life.