Question

What does sitting at the table represent in Langston Hughes’s poem "I, Too"? Cite specific evidence from the text to support your analysis.

Answer 1

It means he's hopeful that someday he'll be able to sit with white people and be seen as equal, not less than.

Step-by-step explanation:

One line that leads up to when he says, "I'll sit at the table when company comes," is, "they send me to eat in the kitchen when company comes." Here, he's talking about how the (white) guy he works for sends him and his black "brothers", as he refers to them as, to hide in the kitchen when they have company because of their skin colour.

Answer 2

However, because he was black, the poet was forced to dine alone in the kitchen. He is not considered a human being with free choice and the freedom to speak. In the future, I'll be at the table with guests. They won't dare say, "Eat in the kitchen." They'll notice my beauty and feel humiliated)