In Langston Hughes' "Harlem," why do you think the comparisons of first and last line are important to the first line of the poem?Why does he start...

The main question of Langston Hughes' "Harlem" is "What
happens to a dream deferred?"

The question is asking, what
happens when someone's dream is put off, delayed or
postponed?

As this is the first line of the poem, it is
safe to assume that this is a key element to the poem's meaning, and that it is not a
casual inquiry. In other words, the reader can assume that the "dream deferred" is
something extremely important.

Hughes' father was
uncomfortable with his racial heritage. Hughes, a black man, experienced racial
prejudice at Columbia University and left because of it.

We
know that Hughes was alive during the Civil Rights Movement. Hughes wrote, "Let America
be America again. Let it be the dream it used to be." The Civil Rights Act was signed in
1964. Hughes died in 1967.

With all of these things in
mind, the "dream" may refer to the "American dream," where freedom and prosperity were
supposed to be available to all people. Or, the "dream" may refer to Martin Luther King,
Jr.'s dream of equality for all men, regardless of
race.

With the assumption that the dream is the most
important thing, the question remains, what happens when that dream is not
attainable?

The two alternatives offered in the poem are
opposites: drying up or exploding; shriveling to nothing or bursting violently. I
believe that these two lines, opposites, offer the potential reaction of a person whose
dream has not been realized, and that Hughes believes there is fine line between the two
manners in which a person will react.

Additionally, the
other descriptions between the two extremes are quiet and unhealthy, but not violent.
Perhaps Hughes is suggesting that a dream unfulfilled may linger and torture in many
cases, but for some, the disappointment cannot be contained and will not "go
quietly."