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Had he known early in his career that his life would have gone the way it did, do you suppose Martin Luther King would have continued down that fearsome road?
I believe he had no choice. I believe his destiny was so inextricably bound - predetermined, even - by the yearnings in his heart for equality, freedom and justice that the road he traveled was the only one he saw, the only one his feet could take. All our lives were made better because he stayed the distance, walked his road in stormy weather, through the darkest woods of America's soul, despite his anger, his fear, his inevitable moments of doubt. Martin Luther King was a remarkable human being, a beautiful man. I can't help but wonder where we would be today had he lived.
Shortly after Rev. Dr. King was assassinated, I was introduced to the poetry of Langston Hughes, through this poem.
A Dream Deferred
by Langston Hughes
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?
like a heavy load.
7 comments:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ny6qP0rb_Ag&feature=youtu.be
He was such a man who is seldom seen. But has bequeathed a memory and teaching that any thoughtful person will aspire to.
(o)
Zhoen: Thank you for the link. I listened carefully, especially to the part about loving one another - Which I struggle with regularly - and when he listed those who had died for the cause. In retrospect it is tempting to say it sounded as if he knew then that he would be one of them, but who knows?
Avus: When I listened to Barack Obama's address at the Democrat Convention in 2001, I thought we might have witnessed another King. I wrote his name in as my choice for president that year, even though he wasn't on the ballot, then voted for him in both election when he was. He seems to be a good man and I know he is trying hard to do a good job, yet - unfairly - I compare him to Dr. King, and find him wanting.
Fresca: Hello and thank you for dropping by.
I can't speak to whether he had a choice, but I do believe that if he did, he would have chosen to continue on the path. Some people are able (more than others) to place the dream ahead of their own personal safety and even their own life.
So that's where "a raisin' in the sun" comes from - later to become the title of a play. And always a bit of a mystery to me since it is rarely printed (even here) with an apostrophe to indicate the missing g; thus opening up the possibility that it referred to the sultana's cousin.
It's horrible to say so but was it King's destiny to be assassinated - the better to advance his cause. He prefigures his own death in one of his major speeches, saying he isn't afraid, perhaps implying future martyrdom. You've got to be internally tranquil to carry on with that in your mind. I always felt that his speeches were prepared like operatic arias, so wide and so effective were their variations in tone and emphasis.
Beautiful post and a touching poem, of course, Langston Hughes.
thanks for these honest words.
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