Poetic Devices

Direct address

There are three instances in which direct address is used in the poem “Ballad of the Landlord” by Langston Hughes. In the first stanza, the tenant addresses his landlord with the expression “landlord, landlord” (l. 1) and reports a problem with the house. The direct address is repeated in the second stanza as well (l. 5) when the tenant reports a second problem with the house. Here, the direct address shows that the tenant is calm and polite even though the repetition of “landlord” suggests a sense of urgency. 

The third instance of direct address is found in the sixth stanza when the landlord calls the police: “Police! Police! Come and get this man!” (ll. 21-22). The direct address is followed by the landlord’s exaggerated accusations,...