Initially, I thought the setting of the poem was down south, but Lenox Avenue is a thoroughfare in Harlem. There is a meeting between the old and the new here. The music of the past being played in the city of the future.

This line is forward thinking and optimistic. It reflects the value placed on progress that is present in Modernism, and the upward trajectory of black people.

There seems to be a connection being made between blacks and the history of the human race. Thinking of Africa as the birthplace of the human race, this part of the poem could be pointing to the not insignificant contributions of black people.

Referring to the "better-class Negro" as more advanced is ironic, when we consider the context in which it is used. The entire work has shown that the "more advanced" are in fact the ones who hold back the progress of a the Negro artist. They may be more advanced as far as class and money, but their culturally they are behind.

This is an interesting line to read when thinking about the current Black community. The "common element" feel they are more black than the higher classes and are quick to criticize anyone they feel is not black enough. Rappers and singers who talk about life in the projects and selling drugs are seen as the purveyors of true black culture. This belief is misleading and offensive as it implies that if you are not poor and uneducated, then you are not black.

While it is possible that the poet meant he wanted to be seen as a poet regardless of his skin, I believe that ultimately the goal was to not be black and not necessarily because of shame as Hughes believes. I am reminded of the book Erasure by Percival Everett. The main character is constrained by his race. His books, while written, are criticized for not exploring the black experience. I think that the young poet may very well have meant that he did not want to be a negro, but I think his reasons for feeling that way are valid.

"This" automatically implied a relationship or a reference to something else that I looked for in the poem. The word is not particularly interesting on its own, but the relationship that is implied and the one that is missing add to the nonsensical speech of the poem.

I noticed that each time I read this word at the beginning of a sentence, it was a question even though there is no question mark. The placement of a word in a sentence creates meaning as well as the definition.

I found this whole line to be a little ironic, because the definition of a word is a single meaningful element of speech and here that whole idea has been turn upside down. There is nothing here that is meaningful, at least not to a broad group. Stein's use of words has left them so that they lack meaning.

I had a difficult time trying to determine what are the "pure products" mentioned. Considering what we have been reading in class and our discussions of modernism, I would say that this refers to transition and the changes that are taking place.

This word took on more meaning to me as I read and then re-read the poem. Railroading is coercing someone into doing something that they may not want to do. The following images of a girl being "tricked out", "rescued", then and put to work, make this word sound as if someone is being pimped out for someone else's benefit.

These lines contrast somewhat with the previous lines. Goldenrod is edible and has healing properties. It is an ideal source of nourishment in comparison to excrement. The two thoughts strung together present the idea that America is grasping at something more substantial than what is available.

This line reminds me of the "unasked question" from W.E.B . Du Bois. The speaker starts the poem by describing a thing but does not name it. Here, that same thing reappears but remains unnamed. The wall itself seems to be the physical manifestation of what separates the speaker and the neighbor. While the wall is there to physically separate, the unnamed thing does so as well.

The contrast of life and death is presented here in these lines. The "fat" spider suggests that she is pregnant and in the process of killing the moth. Ironically this takes place on a flower known for its medicinal qualities. In order to support life the moth must die, showing that life and death are intertwined.

Like the "unasked question" her opinion of herself is being shaped by some force. She is unable to understand what is happening to her seems to doubt it, but her husband as a man and a doctor has more authority and is able to influence the way she sees herself.

The use of the word "worshipped" and "faith" immediately following the preceding lines, changes the meaning of the word "Freedom". Du Bois writes that the negro has been "wooing false gods" in a quest for salvation. To follow that with a description of the same people and their unyielding faith in Freedom gives the reader a sense that Freedom is not what is appears. Reading this in the 21st century, that has proven to be the case. Freedom from slavery unleashed more rage from whites who found their way of life endangered by the progress made by blacks. Even today that is the case with the Alt-right and the rise of Donald Trump.

The position of the enslaved blacks left them at numerous disadvantages. One of which, was their inability to see that Freedom from slavery did not mean that Blacks would truly be free. Over 100 years later this fight is still in progress.

This line makes me think of the saying "ignorance is bliss" only in this instance it is the exact opposite. To be aware of one's ignorance is contradictory considering that ignorance is the lack of knowledge. Here the black man is not just aware of it, but feels that he ignorant and the depth of his understanding of this ignorance makes using that word inappropriate.

This is the first time the word "to" is used. The majority origins are given, but rarely is there a destination. Even in this case there is no destination, possibly because it is unknown and does not matter. This line embodies a sense of struggle and transition as well as uncertainty.