Nature and the Human Soul

Nature and the Human Soul: The Shackles of Freedom Langston Hughes and Kate Chopin use nature in several dimensions to demonstrate the powerful struggles and burdens of human life. Throughout Kate Chopin’s The Awakening and several of Langston Hughes’ poems, the sweeping imagery of the beauty and power of nature demonstrates the struggles the characters confront, and their eventual freedom from those struggles. Nature and freedom coexist, and the characters eventually learn to find …

…symbol for the burden of achieving that freedom, and the anguish of the struggle. Both Chopin and Hughes use nature in their works in the form of sweeping imagery, poignant metaphors, and precise, powerful symbolism. The use of nature for this purpose draws their characters/speakers to life and adds great depth to their works. Nature not only represents humankind’s greatest bliss, but also symbolizes our greatest enemy . . . the earth on which we live.