The Weary Singer

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The Weary Singer Langston Hughes portrays a soulful singer in "The Weary Blues"Ã¯Â¿Â½ who entertains and delights his audience with his rendition of the blues, but who in fact is not just reciting the lyrics but is speaking from his soul. This singer truly means what he sings about himself and derives this emotion from not only the monotony of his job but also the atmosphere of his audience.

His audience enjoys the performance because they can relate. They also have the blues, and feel the same way. That is why they go listen to him, he puts into song what is on their minds. "Ain't got nobody in all this world / Ain't got nobody but ma self."Ã¯Â¿Â½ (ll. 19-20) Blues listeners, especially of the older generation, tend to be solitary, melancholy people. It is also in this verse that the singer offers a little hope, "I's gwine to quit ma frownin' / And put ma troubles on the shelf."Ã¯Â¿Â½

(21-22) This is the anticlimactic high point of the evening.

The singer is in fact feeling as blues as his lyrics suggest. He feels his music deeply, "He did a lazy sway"ÃÂ¦. / He did a lazy sway"ÃÂ¦. / To the tune o' those Weary Blues."Ã¯Â¿Â½ (6-8) And, "Swaying to and fro on his rickety stool."Ã¯Â¿Â½ (12) The melody moves him so much, that when his body moves to the beat of the music, he is in fact overcome by the meaning of the tune to him that he evokes his weariness to emphasize how blue he truly is. "Got the Weary Blues / And I can't be satisfied / I ain't happy no mo' / And I wish that I had died."Ã¯Â¿Â½ (27-30) Hughes's singer is a model for his reaction to criticism for his depreciation...
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