# Liars explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Langston Hughes.

## What happens

The poem reflects on the nature of deceit, portraying the speaker and others as liars who use words to obscure truth and hide behind civilized facades.

## Themes in this chapter

### Urban Life and Alienation

The poem's focus on civilized souls and hidden truths suggests alienation from authentic self-expression.

## Character check-ins

### Unknown

The speaker includes themselves among the liars, reflecting on collective dishonesty.

## Key lines

> It is we who are liars: The Pretenders-to-be who are not And the Pretenders-not-to-be who are.

We are the ones who deceive, pretending to be what we are not and not being what we pretend.

_The speaker identifies the group as liars through contradictory pretenses._

> It is we who use words As screens for thoughts And weave dark garments To cover the naked body Of the too white Truth.

We use language to hide our true thoughts and create elaborate covers for the stark reality.

_Words are depicted as tools to obscure rather than reveal truth._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_15_se/chapters/liars
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_15_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_15_se/chapters