Being Black in an academic institution is a primary theme in “Theme for English B.” The speaker mentions his Blackness several times in the poem, and he notes that he is the only Black “student in [his] class” (Line 10). Even in the 21st century, this reflects the experience of many Black academics—being vastly outnumbered by students of other races. Hughes himself had a similar experience when he studied at Columbia University, where campus racism drove him to withdraw.

After leaving this predominantly white university, Hughes went on to receive several degrees from the first Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in America, Lincoln University. According to Lincoln University’s Langston Hughes Memorial Library website, Hughes “refused to differentiate between his personal experience and the common experience of black America. He wanted to tell the stories of his people without personalizing them, so the reader could step in and draw his own conclusions.”

One aspect of being Black in academia is combating stereotypes. For instance, when the young, Black speaker of Hughes’s poem lists the activities he enjoys, he mentions “sleep[ing]” (Line 21) but quickly follows with “read[ing]” (Line 22); this combats the stereotype that Black men are lazy.