appreciation of poem samta ki aur
Answers
Mother to Son is a straight forward and politically relevant poem structured in the form of a dramatic monologue spoken by the persona of a black mother to her son. The mother advises her son that he will face many adversities in life all of which he must overcome and keep going. The poet uses the stair-case metaphor to represent life. The mother to whom life hasn’t been kind reminds her son that life is not a crystal stair rather it is packed though with tacks and splinters. Through this she wishes to convey him that journey of life more closely resembles a long, trying walk up the dark, decrepit stairways of a tenement than a glide down a “crystal stair.” The “crystal stair” is a metaphor for the American dream and its promise that all Americans shall have equal opportunities. The mother warns her son not to expect an easy climb or a tangible reward. Through the metaphor of ascent, however, the speaker suggests that her endurance and struggle are necessary to progress toward racial justice and to maintain spiritual hope and faith. In this poem, Hughes affirms the personal, collective, and spiritual importance of struggle, endurance, and faith.