Read the following poem and explain what people do when their dreams seem beyond

reach.

Freedom's Plow by Langston Hughes Text based/ Standard Based Questions

What is the connotation of the phrase, “And

When a man starts out with nothing, the faith that is in his heart”?
When a man starts out with his hands
The words “faith that is in his heart”
Empty, but clean, connote hopefulness and desire.

When a man starts to build a world,

He starts first with himself

And the faith that is in his heart

The strength there,

The will there to build.

First in the heart is the dream

What do we do when we have dreams in
Then the mind starts seeking a way.
our heart? What dream does Janie/Nanny
His eyes look out on the world, have in her heart?

On the great wooded world,

On the rich soil of the world,
On the rivers of the world.
The eyes see there materials for building,
We start to seek ourselves out in the world
so that our dreams can come true. Janie’s
dream is to have a marriage with love,
while Nanny’s dream for her
granddaughter is to live a financially
secure life before she dies.

See the difficulties, too, and the obstacles.
The mind seeks a way to overcome these
obstacles.
The hand seeks tools to cut the wood,
This stanza is written metaphorically. Read
from “The eyes see..” to “hands to build”
and explain the meaning as it relates to the
theme of working towards a dream.
To till the soil, and harness the power of
the waters.
Then the hand seeks other hands to help,
A community of hands to help
Thus the dream becomes not one man’s
dream alone,
This stanza means to say that when
working towards a dream, there will be
obstacles to overcome. We will need
people to help us get through these
obstacles. Now, the dream is not yours
alone, but everyone’s dream.

But a community dream. Not my dream

alone, but our dream.

Not my world alone,

But your world and my world,

Belonging to all the hands who build.

A long time ago, but not too long ago,

Ships came from across the sea

Bringing the Pilgrims and prayer-makers,

Adventurers and booty seekers,

Free men and indentured servants,

Slave men and slave masters, all newTo a
new world, America!
A long time ago, but not too long ago,
Ships came from across the sea
Bringing the Pilgrims and prayer-makers,
Adventurers and booty seekers,
Free men and indentured servants,
How does this line remind you of Their Eyes
were watching God? (RL.3.7)
This line reminds me of how the ships had
every man’s dream on board.
How are they the same?
Both show how everyone has a dream that
they want to accomplish.
How are they different?
In this line, it displays the people on board
sailing to their dream while in the book,
the ships represent a man’s dream.
Slave men and slave masters, all new
To a new world, America!
With billowing sails the galleons came
Bringing men and dreams,
women and dreams. In little bands
together,
Heart reaching out to heart,
Hand reaching out to hand,
They began to build our land.
Some were free hands
Seeking a greater freedom,
According to this stanza, what cargo did
the ships bring?
The ships brought over men and women
with dreams.
What did the ships bring in the opening
lines of Their Eyes were watching God?
The ships brought in every man’s dreams.
(a) What does, “in little bands
together” suggest about the people
on board the ship, waiting to reach
their dream?
The phrase means that they are close and
connect with each other having the same
dream which is freedom.
(b) How are the characters in Their Eyes
were watching God similar
to/different from those in the
poem? (RL.3.7)
(c) The characters in Their Eyes Were
Watching God are similar to the
poem because most of the
characters have dreams that they
want to come true. For example,
Nanny wants to see Janie in a
financially secured marriage. And
Janie wants to be in a marriage with
love.
(d) This poem and the book are
different because the people in this
poem are searching for freedom,
while the characters in the book
dream of love and success.