1. “Mother to Son” Langston Hughes
Midterm TDA Practice
“Mother to Son”
Langston Hughes

2. Well, son, I’ll tell you: Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair
Well, son, I’ll tell you: Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair. It’s had tacks in it, And splinters, And boards torn up, And places with no carpet on the floor– Bare. But all the time I’se been a-climbin’ on, And reachin’ landin’s, And turnin’ corners, And sometimes goin’ in the dark Where there ain’t been no light. So boy, don’t you turn back. Don’t you set down on the steps ‘Cause you finds it’s kinder hard. Don’t you fall now— For I’se still goin’, honey, I’se still climbin’, And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.

3. Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair. It’s had tacks in it,
“Mother to Son”
Langston Hughes
Well, son, I’ll tell you:
Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.
It’s had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor–
Bare.

4. But all the time I’se been a-climbin’ on, And reachin’ landin’s, And turnin’ corners, And sometimes goin’ in the dark Where there ain’t been no light.

5. So boy, don’t you turn back
So boy, don’t you turn back. Don’t you set down on the steps ‘Cause you finds it’s kinder hard. Don’t you fall now—

6. For I’se still goin’, honey, I’se still climbin’,

7. And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.

8. Complete the following TDA, which is similar to the one on your midterm:
In “Mother to Son,” how does the tone shift from the beginning of the poem to the end? Use evidence from the poem to support your response.
H and HP

9. Complete the following TDA, which is similar to the one on your midterm:
Authors purposely use specific words to add depth to their work. How does Langston Hughes’s word choice in “Mother to Son” reveal the tone of the poem? Use evidence from the text to support your response.
Level 5.0