Mr. Gershman/Ms. Arsenault Max Vido

Mr. Gershman/Ms. Arsenault Max Vido

ILA 9 Honors 11/9/08

“Any Human to Another”

Understood and Explained

The ills I sorrow at

Not me alone

Like an arrow,

Pierce to the marrow,

Through the fat

And past the bone

Your grief and mine

Must intertwine

Like sea and river,

Be fused and mingle,

Diverse yet single,

Forever and forever.

Let no man be so proud

And confident,

To think he is allowed

A little tent

Pitched in a meadow

Of sun and shadow

All his little own.

Joy may be shy, unique,

Friendly to a few,

Sorrow never scorned to speak

To any who

Were false or true.

Your every grief

Like a blade

Shining and unsheathed

Must strike me down.

Of bitter aloes wreathed,

My sorrow must be laid

On your head like a crown.

Many people in the United States have not experienced living in a community fifteen to twenty blocks long. In the 1920’s Harlem sustained this description and claimed the largest concentration of African Americans in the United States. With the upbeat atmosphere the literary community was at its height. Among the eminent figures of the Harlem Renaissance was Countee Cullen, a poet striving for racial equity. In 1935, Cullen wrote a poem titled “Any Human to Another”. Within the poem, Cullen describes sorrow as a common aspect of life. The elaborate writing as well as the rhyme scheme of this poem enhances the meaning for the reader. While there is no obvious race that “Any Human to Another” was written for, it is implied that Countee Cullen wrote the poem for the Harlem community. “Any Human to Another”, stresses equality and self-identity which is expressed through language that universally speaks to humanity.

Throughout the Harlem Renaissance the issue of racial identity often arose. African Americans were beginning to realize there powerful position in their community. This consciousness was followed by great productivity in the areas of writing, art, and music. Countee Cullen incorporated his sense of racial idenitity in many of his poetry works, but especially in the poem, “Any Human to Another”. A notable stanza in the poem writes, “Your grief and mine must intertwine like sea and river be fused and mingle, diverse yet single, forever and forever” (Cullen). From this line it is understandable that the speaker is describing identity. He states the words, “diverse yet single” (Cullen), explaining how the human race identifies themselves as human beings yet individuals at the same time. When talking about civil rights, this theme can be associated. While people usually describe themselves for their unique characteristics, talents, and body features, sometimes forgotten is the feature shared both globally and indefinitely (Wasley 5). Everyone is a human being. Connected with the Harlem Renaissance, this theme makes it quite apparent how African Americans felt about prejudice. With African Americans sharing their humanity with whites, they found it tough to understand the other races’ motivation for segregation.

The Harlem Renaissance was a splendid awakening of African American writing which stressed equality. Incorporated with the upsurge, was writing that spoke equal rights along with sorrows suffered by blacks. In Countee Cullen’s poem, “Any Human to Another”, these themes are presented. Cullen writes, “Let no man be so proud and confident, to think he is allowed a little tent pitched in a meadow of sun and shadow all his little own” (Cullen). From these lines Cullen conveys the image of a man avoiding sorrow. Rightfully, a man avoiding the pain of others is not fulfilling his spot in society. Cullen speaks for the social minority in this poem who may not have experienced joy like a privileged man (“Any Human to Another”3). With this context being written in the time period of the Harlem Renaissance, one can understand the connection with civil rights. A person avoiding the pain in society is not being fair to their human race. During the Harlem Renaissance blacks were suffering while whites did little to help their cause. Their disregard for other human beings in society can relate to the words written in Countee Cullen’s poem, “Any Human to Another”.

A quality that Countee Cullen possessed in most of his writings was his ability to create a universal language. Countee Cullen strived for African American writing to be less racial, but language that spoke to every culture in America, which could lead to an increased appreciation of the poem. Even though Countee Cullen struggled with his own goal, he did manage to achieve this principal technique in the poem, “Any Human to Another”. From the title alone, the reader can understand Cullen’s attempt of achieving his goal. “Any Human to Another,” meaning humans suffering world wide despite unique differences. In the context of the poem Cullen never states a specific culture or race to connect his themes to. It is implied by the author that “Any Human to Another” was written to depict racial unfairness in the African American community. Most likely, this stems from Cullen’s previous brushes with racial writing. Yet, Cullen’s main goal was to be a poet who was judged by his words, rather than the color of his skin (Wasley 6). His figurative language helped considerably to achieve his goal. In “Any Human to Another”, Cullen uses a simile in the following stanza, “Your grief and mine must intertwine like sea and river be fused and mingle, diverse yet single, forever and forever” (Cullen). A river is a single body of water that then fuses into a sea of vast waters. This stanza helps demonstrate how his themes were for all humanity, which is represented by the diverse waters of the sea (“Any Human to Another” 2). Cullen’s writing was never intended to focus on one race, but to include all races in order to promote the bridge of the literary communities.

After reading the poem, “Any Human to Another”, understanding of the Harlem Renaissance is greatly improved. While it is already understood that the Harlem Renaissance was a time period which reflected an advance in racial identity and creative writing, the universal language present was not clearly presented by the Harlem poets. From the context of “Any Human to Another”, one can understand the wish to have a common literary language. It is also easy to draw inferences from the poem that connects Countee Cullen’s life to the Harlem Renaissance. Being African American in the 1920’s, Countee Cullen writes as a poet stressing racial identity and equality which was being discovered in Harlem at the time. Yet, the ability to be racially equal in his writing has made Countee Cullen a world renowned poet. The Harlem Renaissance required a writer to ignore racial remarks in their writing, and Countee Cullen achieved this significant principle in the poem “Any Human to Another”.

Works Cited

“Any Human to Another.” Poetry for Students. Ed. Marie Napierkowski and Mary Ruby. Vol. 3. Detroit: Thomas Gale, 1998. 1-14. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Springfield Township High School. 11 Nov. 2008 <http://infotrac.galegroup.com/‌itweb/‌?db=GVRL>.

Wasley, Aidan. “Critical Overview.” Poetry for Students. Ed. Marie Napierkowski and Mary Ruby. Vol. 3. Detroit: Thomas Gale, 1998. 5-7. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Springfield Township HIgh School. 11 Nov. 2008 <http://infotrac.galegroup.com/‌itweb/‌?db=GVRL>.