Question

Read the poem “Mother to Son” by Langston Hughes. Keeping in mind the figurative meaning of the staircase, what does the speaker mean by “I’se still climbin’”?
Well, son, I'll tell you:
Life for me ain't been no crystal stair.
It's had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor—
Bare.
But all the time
I'se been a-climbin' on,
And reachin' landin's,
And turnin' corners,
And sometimes goin' in the dark
Where there ain't been no light.
So, boy, don't you turn back.
Don't you set down on the steps.
'Cause you finds it's kinder hard.
Don't you fall now—
For I'se still goin', honey,
I'se still climbin',
And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.


Not getting ahead


Painful hardships


Giving Up


Persevering

Answer 1

The speaker conveys that they continue to preserve through hardships by using the phrase “I’se still climbin”.