Analyse each stanza in this poem
Ruby Brown
by Langston Hughes
She was young and beautiful
And golden like the sunshine
That warmed her body.
And because she was colored
Mayville had no place to offer her,
Nor fuel for the clean flame of joy
That tried to burn within her soul.
One day,
Sitting on old Mrs. Latham's back porch
Polishing the silver,
She asked herself two questions
And they ran something like this:
What can a colored girl do
On the money from a white woman's kitchen?
And ain't there any joy in this town?
Now the streets down by the river
Know more about this pretty Ruby Brown,
And the sinister shuttered houses of the bottoms
Hold a yellow girl
Seeking an answer to her questions.
The good church folk do not mention
Her name any more.
But the white men,
Habitués of the high shuttered houses,
Pay more money to her now
Than they ever did before,
When she worked in their kitchens.
Stanza 1:
The first stanza sets the scene by describing Ruby Brown as young, beautiful, and "golden like the sunshine." It also mentions that because she is colored, the town of Mayville has no place to offer her and she struggles to find joy.
Stanza 2:
In this stanza, Ruby is seen questioning her situation while polishing silver on Mrs. Latham's porch. She wonders what opportunities exist for a colored girl in her position and whether there is any joy in her town.
Stanza 3:
This stanza reveals that Ruby's reputation has changed, with the streets by the river knowing more about her. The "sinister shuttered houses" in the bottoms now hold Ruby, as she seeks answers to her questions. The church folk no longer mention her name, but white men from the high shuttered houses pay more money to her now than when she worked in their kitchens.