Reader Response #1

Name

Instructor Name

Art 101

19November 2018

Reader Response # 1

Having a dream motivates a person to stick around things which will help him in achieving those dreams. Life can be incomplete or purposeless without having a dream. Langston Hughes in his poem 'Harlem' shows how important is to have a dream and how hurtful is to let go of a it. He started with a question, asking about dream whether it is alive or not. And then he continues his poem by asking the same question in different way. Hughes believe that shattered dream does not die, instead it undergoes some transformation. In the poem he talks about African Americans who cannot have a dream of great things because they live in the society of oppression. If they try to dream it will be hard for them to fulfill it, it will take a lifetime or in the end it will die anyway.

It is not easy to let go of your dream or goal. Having a dream is a part of life and a person live or puts efforts to accomplish it. I still remember the time when I had to put off my dream because the circumstances did not allow me to continue dreaming. I wanted to climb the highest mountain in the world. I knew that it was not an easy task but once a person dreams of anything he or she can do anything to achieve it. I did every research that was needed and watched videos and read articles about people who have climbed different mountains in the world because it is important to have knowledge and information about the thing one wants to achieve. I quickly learnt about everything that I needed to know or the things which were necessary for climbing.

It was the day when my dream shattered, the day which changed my whole life. The day when I was coming back home after having a useful conversation with my friend. I met an awful accident and that accident changed my whole life. I was alive but badly injured. Even at that time where people usually think if they I would die or live, I was thinking about my journey. Whether I would be able to achieve it or not. Unfortunately, it was assured that I would not be able to walk for some month because my leg was badly broken. It was hard to even think about walking and climbing a mountain was something impossible. At that moment I thought my life is ended and There is nothing left in the world. I did not want to even think about it that I would not be able to achieve my goal. It was not that I will not be able to walk again; the only problem was that I will not be able climb a mountain ever. I was alive but this was killing me. I almost forgot the pain in my leg, the only pain left in my life was putting off my dream.

The very last line of Langston Hughes poem 'Harlem' is the question to the answer of my shattered dream. His poem summaries my experience of putting off my dream. He is asking about the dream whether it is still there, is it hidden somewhere and will come to light one day or it will never be achieved. People experience things differently from others. Some people will achieve their goals after hardship, some people like African American which Hughes refers to in his poem, have big dreams but the society prevents them and some people like me will never be able to achieve their goals in their life. His poem is the true picture of my experience.