40 pages 1 hour read

Langston Hughes

Thank You, M'am

Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1958

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Symbols & Motifs

Blue Suede Shoes

When Mrs. Jones remarks that Roger must have “been hungry” to resort to theft (Paragraph 30), Roger admits he was hoping to buy a pair of blue suede shoes. The exchange is telling because while Roger is implied to come from an impoverished family, he’s focused on securing not necessities but a luxury item; the expense of suede, coupled with the shoe’s unusual color, suggest that Roger is interested more in fashion than practicality. However, this is not to say Roger’s desire for the shoes is frivolous; on the contrary, it reflects the very basic dream of one day enjoying a better life. Mrs. Jones clearly understands this, which is why she gives Roger the money to buy the shoes.

Roger’s interest in the shoes also takes place within a particular historical and cultural context. Hughes’s story was published just two years after Elvis Presley popularized the song “Blue Suede Shoes.” Although this particular song was written by a white man (Carl Perkins), many of Elvis’s hits were first developed and recorded by black artists; in addition, Elvis’s overall musical style drew heavily on the tunes and rhythms of blues musicians.

Related Titles

By Langston Hughes

Study Guide

logo

Children’s Rhymes

Langston Hughes

Children’s Rhymes

Langston Hughes

Study Guide

logo

Cora Unashamed

Langston Hughes

Cora Unashamed

Langston Hughes

Study Guide

logo

I look at the world

Langston Hughes

I look at the world

Langston Hughes

Study Guide

logo

Let America Be America Again

Langston Hughes

Let America Be America Again

Langston Hughes

Study Guide

logo

Me and the Mule

Langston Hughes

Me and the Mule

Langston Hughes

Plot Summary

logo

Mule Bone: A Comedy of Negro Life

Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston

Mule Bone: A Comedy of Negro Life

Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston

Study Guide

logo

Not Without Laughter

Langston Hughes

Not Without Laughter

Langston Hughes

Study Guide

logo

Slave on the Block

Langston Hughes

Slave on the Block

Langston Hughes

Plot Summary

logo

The Big Sea

Langston Hughes

The Big Sea

Langston Hughes

Study Guide

logo

Theme for English B

Langston Hughes

Theme for English B

Langston Hughes

STUDY + TEACHING GUIDE

logo

The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain

Langston Hughes

The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain

Langston Hughes

Study Guide

logo

The Negro Speaks of Rivers

Langston Hughes

The Negro Speaks of Rivers

Langston Hughes

Study Guide

logo

The Ways of White Folks

Langston Hughes

The Ways of White Folks

Langston Hughes

Study Guide

logo

The Weary Blues

Langston Hughes

The Weary Blues

Langston Hughes