Analysis of Bop - Langston Hughes

Langston Hughes was known as the first African American writer to achieve an international literary reputation.  During the time of when his essay, Bop, was written, racial inequality was prominent in societies.  In Bop, Langston Hughes recounts a conversation that occurs between two characters talking about a music genre known as Bop.  The entirety of this essay is an allusion, which utilizes the music genre of Bop to show the racial inequality by contrasting Be-Bop, the black version, and Re-Bop, the white version. Since the piece is written towards people who do not have an idea about racial inequality, Simple, one of the main characters begins to describe the origin of Be-Bop and says, “From the police beating Negroes’ heads, overtime a cop hits a Negro with his billy club, that old club says, BOP! BOP! . . . BE-BOP! . . . MOP! . . . BOP!” (Hughes 191).  Through the use onomatopoeia, Hughes shows how the Black’s version of Be-Bop is based off of racial discrimination.  This helps show how the blacks were discriminated against which clearly displays racial inequality.  This helps support his argument that racial issues are still very evident in society.  In his essay, Hughes also uses another rhetoric device known as juxtaposition.  Simple begins to describe the contrasts between the whites and blacks and says, “White folks do not get their heads beat just for being white.  But me - a cop is liable to grab me almost any time and beat my head - just for being colored,” (Hughes 191).  By showing the contrasting ideas between whites and blacks,  Hughes demonstrates the use of juxtaposition.  Since Simple states that he was beaten for being black, this backs up Hughes’s purpose in showing that racial inequality is a serious issue and it is evident in simple ideas like music.  After reading this essay, I feel moved in the sense that racial inequality is everywhere we look or go simply because of someone having a different color of their skin.  I believe that this essay is quite applicable to the 21st century and should be a ‘must read’ for all societies.

Blacks being discriminated in this photo by police brutality, which created the popularity of the  music genre Be-Bop.  http://www.authentichistory.com/1946-1960/8-civilrights/celebrity/