Langston Hughes

Question 0

Where and when was Langston Hughes born?

Answer 0

Joplin, Missouri, in 1902

Question 1

Langston Hughes was a

Answer 1

Poet, playwright, writer of fiction, song lyrics, essays, autobiographies, children’s stories

Question 2

Grandson of

Answer 2

ex-slaves

Question 3

Ancestors were killed in

Answer 3

John Brown’s raid at Harper’s Ferry in 1859

Question 4

Father was a

Answer 4

“jack of all trades” – school teacher, law clerk, farmer, and more

Question 5

Mother had inclination for the

Answer 5

arts – plays, dance, poetry

Question 6

Father did not approve of interest in writing but agreed to pay Hughes’ tuition to

Answer 6

Columbia University

Question 7

In ____ submitted “__________________” to the _____ and was published

Answer 7

1921
“The Negro Speaks of Rivers”
Crisis

Question 8

Dropped out of school, worked odd jobs and began to travel where?

Answer 8

Europe, the west coast of Africa (Senegal, the Gold Coast, Nigeria, the Congo, Portuguese West Africa)

Question 9

Moved to ______, ______ in __________, ____

Answer 9

Harlem, New York

November, 1924

Question 10

Meets _________ who quickly arranges for a book contract for Hughes

Answer 10

Carl Van Vechten

Question 11

First book of poetry

Answer 11

The Weary Blues (1926)

Question 12

Langston Hughes was the first ____________ author to support himself through his writing – produced more than ___ books

Answer 12

African-American

60

Question 13

Noted _______, _______, ________ as his primary influences

Answer 13

Paul Lawrence Dunbar, Carl Sandburg, and Walt Whitman

Question 14

Literary style:

Answer 14

rich descriptions, eloquence, biting humor and satire; insightful, colorful portrayals of black life in America

Question 15

Portrayal of

Answer 15

Realistic black characters

Question 16

Thematic concerns:

Answer 16

Race at the center of his work

Question 17

Always sought to _____ to all Americans

Answer 17

Speak

Question 18

On the larger issues of social, economic, and political justice, Langston Hughes was a _____ for those below – the underdog

Answer 18

Voice

Question 19

Issues concerning

Answer 19

Black culture

Question 20

His most famous fictional character is _________, nicknamed Simple

Answer 20

Jesse B. Semple

Question 21

Uses ______ to protest and satirize the existing injustices

Answer 21

Humor

Question 22

Finished his college education at

Answer 22

Lincoln University in Pennsylvania (1926-1929)

Question 23

Accused of being _____

Answer 23

“Leftist”

Question 24

He testified before _______ in March of ______

Answer 24

Senator Joseph McCarthy

1953

Question 25

Traveled to Cuba, Haiti, Spain, China, Japan, the Soviet Union, Hawaii and most of the

Answer 25

continental US

Question 26

Died at the age of ___ in _____

Answer 26

65

1967

Question 27

Considered by many the ______ of African American letters

Answer 27

poet laureate (a poet recognized or acclaimed as the most eminent or representative of a country or locality)