# Wide River explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Langston Hughes.

## What happens

A lament of separation and longing, where the speaker is physically and emotionally cut off from their beloved by a wide, un-crossable river, expressing desperation and the threat of death if they cannot reunite.

## Themes in this chapter

### Love and Loss

The poem centers on the speaker's profound love and the agony of separation from their beloved, with the river symbolizing an insurmountable barrier.

## Character check-ins

### Unknown

The speaker who yearns to cross the river to reach their love.

## Key lines

> Wide river 'Tween ma love an' me.

A vast river separates me from my beloved.

_Highlights the central obstacle of physical distance._

> Cause if I don't see ma baby I'll lay down an' die right now.

If I cannot see my beloved, I will die of despair.

_Emphasizes the speaker's desperation and the stakes of the separation._

## Links

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