Tired

“Tired” is a lyric poem, which is generally a short poem that expresses the personal viewpoints of the poet or speaker. The poet uses free verse to express his thoughts on the world, therefore he is not restrained by iambic pentameter or other regular meter. However, the form of “Tired” appears deliberate, with Line 2 and Line 8 intentionally clipped and Lines 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 staying within five to eight syllables.

Hughes employs a subtle but identifiable rhyme scheme, with “you” (Line 2) rhyming with “two” (Line 6), and “kind” (Line 4) rhyming with “rind” (Line 8). The rhymes and jumpy meter reflect the influence of jazz and blues, as these two musical genres allow the artist to create rhyme and rhythm. The two swerves in line length reflect jazz and blues’ ability to produce sounds of different lengths in the same composition—whether those sounds come from the jazz musician's instrument, the blues singer’s mouth, or the poet.

Another way to think about the form is in the context of a riddle. The poem is a lyric, but it can also be seen as a puzzle because the speaker doesn’t provide a clear solution to the problem of the “worms” (Line 7).