Olivia VanSickle

SWC 100
Draft 1
An Atom Bomb of Peace:
Hughes’ Deactivation of Atomized Racism
The most noteworthy issue in the chronicle of mankind is the reality that
racial discrimination is anything but a deformity. Racism is mans most fatal threat
to another man; for it never seems capable of being extinguished. It is the utmost
hatred to have repulsion of another person, especially with motives that appear
to be very minimal. From early instances of prejudice in the transatlantic slave
trade, to the present day arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.,
racism has consistently been a contagious disease for centuries. In Langston
Hughes’ Best of Simple, Hughes explores the atom bomb as a symbol of
continuous racism that operates in an unbreakable cycle. However, in order to
act toward each person equally, actions towards minorities must be different.
Hughes uses the atom bomb in The Best of Simple to portray that every action
has a reaction, in relation to racism. The atom bomb in The Best of Simple
symbolizes a deliberately created hate, which without awareness can inflict
suffering on not only the targeted group, but the constructor as well.
In the event of nuclear aftermath, the world as it is known would cease to
exist. A new form of life would emerge, however every life form and tangible
object would be contaminated by radioactive particles, or would become
“charged” as Simple believes. The first reference to an atom bomb is made in the
beginning of the novel when Simple hastily declines a salutation from the
narrator. From the instance that Simple declines the greeting, he instantly loses
his temper saying, “Good evening nothing, It’s too hot to be any good evening.
Besides, this paper’s full of nothing but atom bombs and bad news” (Hughes 6).
Simple is acting out on impulse from the negativity derived from the paper he is
reading. The reference of “..this paper’s full of nothing but atom bombs and bad
news” (6), suggests that the news print does nothing but harshly attack African
Americans. In a setting of discrimination and hate, Simple finds himself victim of
allowing himself to succumb to the attacks in the paper.
During the development of the atom bomb, Simple explains in Radioactive
Redcaps that there are not any African Americans working on the bomb. Hughes
is suggesting at this point in the text that Caucasians are responsible for creating
the racism and prejudice that plagues America. To involve an African American in
the process of creating something so powerful like a bomb, would force whites to
put trust in blacks that they are not capable of. To drop an atom bomb is the
ultimate attack on a society, similar to how Hughes views racism and even further
yet the enforcement of the Jim Crow Laws. In the creation of the Jim Crow Laws,
similar to the construction of the atom bomb, African Americans were not
permitted to partake in the assembly of either one. It is obvious that when it
comes to whom to blame for the start of the clash between Caucasians and
African Americans, the whites are at fault. The construction and enforcement of
Jim Crow will, like an atom bomb, still have after affects centuries after it's
extinction. Simple says in regard to dropping the atom bomb, "then both of us
would be so full of atoms for the next millions of years" (212), which provokes the
thought that once the bomb has been dropped, and it is many years from the
original doomsday, that the aftermath of the tragedy will still run rampant.
Through this symbol Hughes is proposing that once the bomb implodes, the long-
term consequence will still be relevant years into the future. The administration of
the Jim Crow Laws is a bomb being dropped upon the African American culture
by White America. However, what the creators did not think of when composing
such a dangerous weapon was that every action has a reaction, and the reaction
may have an outcome that is possibly unfavorable to them in the end.
Once an atom bomb is dropped, as Simple believes, everything will be
charged by a radioactive force that is contagious. Being atomized would at first
only affect the targets but could potentially spread to those who created the
bomb in the first place. The chain reaction, which would occur in a sequence of
events, would entail the atomized atomizing the original creators of the weapon.
For example, Simple's first reaction if he were to be atomized would be to call his
former landlady. Simple says, "The first person I am going to telephone is my
former landlady! When she picks up the phone, I hope to atomize her like a
Japanese tuna!" (212). This dialog that Hughes presents Simple with is
presenting the chain reaction that takes place when one is feeling attacked. In
theory, because Simple has been atomically attacked and is "charged" with not
only radioactive particles but with raw emotion, his first reaction is to jeopardize
another individual who has been detrimental to him. It is important that Hughes
shows a bigoted side of Simple that demonstrates the viscous cycle that racism
circulates in. Discrimination towards African Americans by Caucasians is without
a doubt well publicized, but Hughes’ symbolic reference to the atom bomb
exposes a different face of racism that doesn't discriminate. The atom bomb
exposes the snowball affect of racism and how both participants to blame. In
Simple Prays a Prayer, Simple even states, "Too many mens and womens are
dead. The fault is mine and theirs, too" (7). Not only is Simple's prayer vulnerable
and genuine, it also reveals a sense of responsibility taken by Simple that he
understands that he and his race also fuels the fire of prejudice. Considering that
both parties are to blame for the way racism continues to plague America is often
overlooked. Even if both races are not the creator, both preserve and maintain
their wicked creation.
Shared fear incites group instinct, and is inclined to generate cruelty
towards those who have not been recognized as part of the group. Is a notion of
peace out of the question when it comes to Blacks and Whites? It is fundamental
to be capable of forgiving. To lack the power to be merciful means to lack the
capability to love. In the rock bottom of the worst of an individual is some good,
and in the best there is corruption. When it is discovered that not everyone is the
same, and treatment should not be biased, there will be less motive to hate the
enemies. If it were up to Hughes to correct the world, he would launch a mass
construction of an atom bomb. Individuals of all colors, religions, sex, and
cultures would each play a roll in the construction of the atom bomb of peace. It
would atomize all those in its reach, and they would ultimately outreach to others.
Peace has to be created in order to be maintained, and it will never be achieved
with the hostility and belligerence that racism provokes.
Works Cited
Hughes, Langston. “Radioactive Redcaps.” The Best of Simple. 1961. New
York. Hill and Wang, 1992. 210-213

Hughes, Langston. “Simple Prays a Prayer.” The Best of Simple. 1961.

New York. Hill and Wang, 1992. 6-7