A Critical Essay of “Any Human to Another”

Countee Cullen was a man who struggled to be called a “poet” instead of a “Negro poet.” His life during the Harlem Renaissance was filled with inequality and prejudice. These facts have lead many analysts to perceive his poem “Any Human to Another” as a cry for racial equality. However, Cullen’s manipulation of structure, imagery, and symbols in the poem reveals that his true theme is that all humans are individually unique but must live together in harmony and equality, caring for and helping each other.

The first technique Cullen uses to show his theme is the structure of the poem. “Any Human to Another” is made up of five stanzas: the first and second are six lines long, the third and fifth contain seven lines, and the fourth stanza is made up of only five lines. The author uses these varying lengths for a purpose; he wants the readers to see the way in which a variety of different types join together to form one poem. This is analogous to the way in which many unique people make up our society. The diversity of stanza length in the poem shows that the diversity of society in the world is a main contributing factor to our culturally enriched lives. Another example of how the structure of this poem relates to the theme is in the rhyme schemes of the five stanzas. Each part has several lines that rhyme with other lines in that stanza; however, the rhyme scheme of one stanza does not match with that of any other. This again shows the unique parts of each stanza that all go together to make one beautiful poem. Similar to the way this poem would lack excitement if it followed one rhyme pattern the whole way through, life would be not be very entertaining if everyone acted, talked, thought, etc. the same way. The way Cullen constructs this poem is an excellent representation of life.

A second way the theme of this poem can be seen is through imagery. The first glimpse of this is in stanza one: Cullen writes, “Pierce to the marrow…and past the bone.” This passage provokes feelings/images of pain in our minds, addressing the same pain one feels when shunned in the world, whether on the basis of appearance, gender, nationality, etc. This describes the part of the theme that says people must care for each other. When pain pierces one’s heart, Cullen proposes that these feelings must “Be fused and mingle, diverse yet single,” with others’, as he states in the second stanza. His meaning is that individuality is good but people must help each other; this is the path to an equal society where all are accepted. A final example of imagery is the “shining and unsheathed” description of a blade in the last stanza. Cullen wants the reader to perceive grief as dangerous and ready to strike. Along with reiterating the fact that all humans must help one another, Cullen now states an ultimatum: either society works to eliminate grief, or they can never be truly content with their lives. The “sword” of grief will come down on the public if they cannot coexist. The unique characteristics of each human being must be cherished and respected, not rejected and ridiculed.

The final technique Cullen uses to illustrate his theme in “Any Human to Another” is symbolism. In the first stanza, he describes an arrow that pierces to the bone. This object represents, like the blade in stanza five, grief and sorrow. As is true when dealing with these weapons, any tough outer shell that one “puts on” is a futile attempt to avert any sorrow or distress. This exemplifies the theme in the way that all mankind must exist together in peace so that the “arrow” of ills cannot penetrate society. Symbolism is also used in stanza two: “Your grief and mine must intertwine like sea and river.” The sea and the river are two different things, but the fact that they are both bodies of water allows them to join together. One person is very different from the next, but certain inner qualities, such as love, hope, fear, and sorrow, bring people together in an emotional bond. In addition, the river is a smaller version of the sea that flows into it, as one person’s anguish flows into the larger distress of the entire public. A final demonstration of symbolism as the author’s means to express his opinion is the “little tent” in the second stanza. Cullen writes that no man is allowed his own “meadow of sun and shadow,” the sun being joyous feelings while the shadow is angst. No man deserves the privilege of indulging himself in “sun” while others in the world have troubles; on the other hand, no man should deal with the “shadow” of inequality without a friend or companion. As a member of the human race, each individual has their own duty to care for and help others.

Countee Cullen clearly has a message to spread through this poem. His structure of individual stanzas coming together, imagery of diversity and grief, and symbols of emotional bonds say one thing: society must be made of individual people who coexist in peace, aiding and respecting one another. This message is clearly a valuable truth we must all learn.