Success is a choice
Perseverance could be described as one's will to carry on towards success. People have to make the decision to persevere on their own. This idea can be seen in many pieces of text including the following poems.“Invictus” by William Ernest Henley and “Mother to son” by Langston Hughes both share the lesson that success is one's own decision.

Through “Invictus,” William Ernest Henley portrays that success lies in one's own decisions. He does this through the use of diction the theme is expressed by using words that show that he is very brave and has an unbreakable will to succeed. This is shown in the quote, “And yet the menace of the years Finds and shall find me unafraid.” (Henley 11-12). This device is used when Henley uses strong words like …show more content…
The use of an extended metaphor expresses the theme because by comparing life to a staircase the author says that people have to keep climbing and persevere until they succeed. This can be shown by the quote, “For I’se still goin’, honey I’se still climbin’, And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.” (Hughes 18-20). This device is used by comparing life to a staircase and states metaphorically that life isn't perfect or easy but people still have to make the decision to keep going and eventually it might get better. Another device that Langston Hughes uses is diction because the word choice the author uses in mother to son helps the reader understand the situation and theme of the poem. This can be seen in the quote, “Don’t you set down on the steps ‘cause you finds it’s kinder hard.” (Hughes 15-16). Langston Hughes uses diction to help the reader understand that the poem is being said by a mother to her son also judging by Hughes word choice she is from the south. This can help a reader to understand the theme because by understanding the speaker and the situation one can get an idea what the theme