Harlem: A Poem by Walter Dean Myers Essay Example

This picture book full of poetry or literary work accompanied by stunning visuals redefines the poetry genre. It looks like a children's book, but far from it, it is far deeper than that. Imagine if Homer wrote the Illiad and also put in illustrations of all the heroes such as Odysseus accomplishing their feats. Harlem, New York is full of literary history with the likes of Langston Hughes and Countee Cullen, who are celebrated in high regard in this visual poem. The artwork and pictures are done by Walter Dean Myers' son Christopher Myers, an established artist in his own right. With Walter's writing and Christopher's pictures, the poem establishes itself among the greatest that have been produced from Harlem, and that is a big claim given Harlem's rich history.

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A weary blues that Langston knew

And Countee sung

A river of blues where Du Bois waded

And Baldwin preached

Harlem poet and writer Langston Hughes published a poem called "A weary blues" in 1926. Countee Cullen was a brilliant, writer, poet and orator from Harlem who few ranks at the same level as Langston Hughes now but not Walter Dean Myers. Du Bois was, of course, a great Pan-African leader and spiritual guide for not just Harlem but black people all over the world. James Baldwin, another accomplished writer from Harlem, was taught by Countee Cullen who himself married Yolanda du Bois, albeit for a short time.

Myers knew all these backstories when he was writing these lines of poetry of course. He manages to make the wordings sound seamless with the effortless and musical cascade of poetry he uses. Myers is not only recognizing the Harlem literature greats who influenced him, he is subtly making a point that there is something special about Harlem; the streets, the people, the gray-area history of the people taken from the West African coast as slaves "They brought a call / a song First heard in the villages of / Ghana/Mali/Senegal". Ghana, Mali, and Senegal are of course West African countries; the homeland.

Halfway through this particular part of the poem, the reader has to think to understand what Walter Myers is writing, and in many instances, a re-read or two helps one understand.

Caught by a full-lipped

Full hipped Saint

Washing collard greens

Collard greens are a popular vegetable of choice for meals in Harlem then and now. Usually, women prepare meals as in many places. The woman being described as a Saint is a beautiful black woman from the illustrations, and she is full of life and vigor. Harlem indeed was a place that represented a promise from the early days of slavery in the 17th, 18th and 19th century.

Escaped slaves from the South (Georgia is mentioned) sought refuge in Harlem and indeed "Harlem was a promise" as it represented hope. In Harlem, a black man could simply be a man and not a slave. He could be anything he wanted starting with not being a slave- this is what Myers meant when he wrote: "Have to know his place." The spirit and freedom offered by Harlem even before the Harlem Renaissance made it easy for the poets, writers, and Pan Africanists to make a name for themselves boldly especially in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

"A journey on the A train / That started on the banks of the Niger / And had not ended" Myles mentions the Niger River which was a major route deep into the West African mainland. Slave traders went up and down the river looking for African people to enslave during the Transatlantic slave trade. "Shango and Jesus" are mentioned in the same breath. The people in Harlem trace their roots back to West Africa where the goddess Shango is worshipped. Jesus was introduced to the slaves by their Christian captors, the White man. "Asante and Mende" are among the many West African tribes which found themselves as just people of Harlem; different backgrounds but one home. Myers writing is one of a kind and, besides Christopher's pictures, it makes one think about the streets and people of Harlem and picture them most vividly.