Black men have souls. Not just the physical soul that each person possesses, but that culture or essence that they represent. Whether it is the jazz music they create or the food prepared, the soul of the black man is unlike any other. It is like a relentless entity that keeps moving forward no matter what it endures or what difficulties it faces. It has also been around since the beginning of the company. The Harlem Renaissance was the first movement in the United States to describe the soul that black men had and still have. With its emphasis on African culture, the Harlem Renaissance proved to be one of the most prolific periods for black men, particularly in the arts, literature, and music. Harlem Renaissance works have this unique soulful charisma that black people seem to perfect. In his poem "The Negro Speaks of Rivers", author Langston Hughes assumes the persona of a universal black man, meaning he speaks for all, and this is demonstrated through his use of history, of his political position and the concept. of the soul. Born in 1902, Langston Hughes had encountered several problems growing up. Between his parents' divorce when he was just a young boy and his father's departure from the country shortly thereafter, Hughes had a rough start to his old age. He never really had a stable home, as he lived with several people over the years due to his mother moving away, including his grandmother. Langston Hughes' father, who resided in Mexico due to racial problems in the United States, was known to have a dislike of his own people. In an effort to finance his education after completing his primary education, Hughes went to visit his father in Mexico for financial purposes. While en route to Mexico, Hughes wrote "The Negro Speaks of Rivers", after pondering middle of paper... a civilized black soul, to a person in captivity in the United States. Langston Hughes shapes history because of his contributions to black literature and his involvement in the Harlem Renaissance. Hughes speaks for generations of black men in the poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers.” Works Cited “Abraham Lincoln in Indiana.” National Parks Service. National Parks Service, nd Web. December 8, 2013. Dworkin, Ira. Near The Congo”: Langston Hughes and the geopolitics of internationalist poetry. " American Literary History 24.4 (2012): 631-657. Humanities International Complete. Web. December 11, 2013. Hughes, Langston. “The Negro Speaks of Rivers.” Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, nd Web. December 6, 2013 . Rummel, Jack Langston Hughes New York: Chelsea House, 1988. Print. Socarides, Alexandra ““The Negro Speaks of the Rivers” by Langston Hughes” Np, August 1, 2013. Web. December 7. 2013.