“Life is for the living.
Death is for the dead.
Let life be like music.
And death a note unsaid.”
Source: The Collected Poems
“What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?”
"Harlem"
Montage of a Dream Deferred (1951)
Context: What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up
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? Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load. Or does it explode?
Let America Be America Again (1935)
Context: Sure, call me any ugly name you choose —
The steel of freedom does not stain.
From those who live like leeches on the people's lives,
We must take back our land again,
America!
"Theme from English B"
Montage of a Dream Deferred (1951)
"The Negro Speaks of Rivers," from The Weary Blues (1926)
"The Weary Blues," from The Weary Blues (1926)
“You talk like they
don’t kick dreams
around downtown.”
"Comment on Curb"
Montage of a Dream Deferred (1951)
“I've known rivers:
Ancient, dusky rivers.
My soul has grown deep like the rivers.”
"The Negro Speaks of Rivers," from The Weary Blues (1926)