“Ballad of Sam Solomon” by Langston Hughes

The poem “Ballad of Sam Solomon” is about suffrage. The poem essentially tells the experience of a black guy who actively campaigned for the right to vote on Election Day. In the poem, Sam Solomon is opposed by his white colleagues, who ban him from voting. Nonetheless, he rallies other black guys and votes on the due date. In Hughes’ attempt to illustrate the power of a united Black society, numerous themes emerge in the poem. In “Ballad of Sam Solomon,” a black man utilises his voice to battle for his right to vote and mobilises his fellow black men and women to vote.

The Ballad of Sam Solomon brings African-American political consciousness and its claim to political rights to the fore. The poem criticises whites for their intimidation and physical violence. On the other hand, it affirms the manhood of African-Americans. The poem’s content is conveyed via a dialogue that demonstrates Sam Solomon’s defiant reciprocity. The poem, on the other hand, is focused on two absent forces: the Ku Klux Klan and the African-American masses. Sam and the white crackers serve as illustrative figures.

The impersonal rendering of the African-American predicament in the poem helps to define Sam’s character as an African-American. As a result, Sam confronts white crackers as follows: “You may call out the Klan/But you must’ve forgotten/That a Negro is a MAN” (Rampersad 295). The “Klan” and the “Negro” construct a political power balance that controls the entire poem.

The rhyming words “Klan” and “man” result in irony. The Klan adherents are aggressive and degrading. On the other hand, the African-American is strong enough to face the truth.

The poem reveals the new standing of the African-American who want to control his own affairs. He primarily strives for political equality:

A few years ago,
Negroes never voted but
Sam said, it's time to go
To the polls election day
And make your choice known
Cause the vote is not restricted
To white folks alone.
(Rampersad 295)

The African-American political claim highlights a fundamental distinction in the role that has been imposed on them in the past. The remark “a few years ago” reflects a history of slavery and persecution in which African-Americans were deemed nothing more than “objects” whose existence is essential only since they serve the white man. ‘It is time to go,’ denotes the new African-American who is well aware of everything and is constantly on the lookout, ready to take appropriate action. The rhyming terms ‘ago’ and ‘go’ add to the analogy by referring to the past and present, respectively. The most important step is ‘to make your choice known,’ which validates African-American political existence. It is these people’s freshly formed choice that carries the parallel to its logical conclusion. The poem as a whole prepares us for the encounter with an imposed aloneness that makes voting a solely white privilege.

Thematic Analysis of Ballad of Sam Solomon

Ballad of Sam Solomon” demonstrates Hughes’ intent to be a documentary poet, focusing on the struggle for suffrage by Blacks in Miami, Florida.

The ballad commemorates Sam 245 Solomon’s political organising; also, it is designed to inspire Black people to organise their actions by encouraging them with example, facts, values, and ideas. The framing refrain (1-4, 53-56) encapsulates the reinvention of Black people’s identity through their action of voting despite their fear of the Ku Klux Klan and the comfortable Southern white caricature, “black boy” Sam begins by rallying his supporters (5-24). Then, in dialogue (25-40) and action (41-48), his retorts to “the crackers” threats make him a heroic leader. The speaker of “Color” expresses his satisfaction in being Black with a balanced set of suppositions, each with contrasting similes:

I would wear it
Like a banner for the proud-
Not like a shroud.
I would wear it
Like a song soaring high-
Not moan or cry.