# I Thought It Was Tangiers I Wanted explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Langston Hughes.

## What happens

The speaker reflects on their desire for exotic places like Tangiers, Paris, Antwerp, Genoa, and Africa, only to realize that happiness is not found in external locations but within oneself.

## Themes in this chapter

### Dreams and Despair

The speaker's dreams of travel and exotic places give way to the realization that happiness is internal, highlighting the tension between aspiration and disillusionment.

### Urban Life and Alienation

References to cities like Paris, Antwerp, and Genoa evoke urban settings, while the speaker's sense of dislocation underscores a theme of alienation.

## Character check-ins

### Unknown

The speaker who yearns for distant places and ultimately discovers that happiness lies within.

## Key lines

> I thought it was Tangiers I wanted

I believed that traveling to Tangiers would fulfill me.

_The opening line establishes the speaker's initial misconception about the source of happiness._

> Happiness lies nowhere, Some old fool said, If not within oneself.

An old saying claims that happiness is not found in external places but inside oneself.

_This line encapsulates the poem's central realization about the nature of happiness._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_15_se/chapters/i-thought-it-was-tangiers-i-wanted
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_15_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_15_se/chapters