Langston Hughes’ poem, “ Madam’s Calling Cards ” is from a twelve-poem series, titled “Madam to You,” that offers a character study of a woman named Alberta K. Johnson. The poem consists of five quatrains, each with the rime scheme, ABCB.
Alberta K. Johnson always insists that people call her “Madam.” Each poem in the “Madam to You” series uses a personality quirk of Alberta’s to convey some aspect of her character. The other poems in the series are titled, “Madam’s Past History,” “Madam and her Madam,” “Madam and the Rent Man,” “Madam and the Number Writer,” “Madam and the Phone Bill,” “Madam and the Charity Child,” “Madam and the Fortune Teller,” “Madam and the Wrong Visitor,” “Madam and the Minister,” “Madam and the Might-Have-Been,” and “Madam and the Census Man.”
First Stanza: “I had some cards printed”
Alberta K. Johnson is speaking; she tells her listener that a few days ago, she had some cards printed, and it cost more “than [she] wanted to pay.” Alberta speaks quite plainly—even if she does so in riming quatrains.
Second Stanza: “I told the man”
Alberta continues to elaborate on the situation, involving the process of having her cards printed. She reports her conversation with the printer of the cards. She was not happy about how expensive it was just to get her cards printed. She told the printer, “I wasn’t no mint.” But she wanted to see her name on a card so she thus had to spring for this expenditure; since she “hankered to see / [Her] name in print,” she continued with the transaction.
Third Stanza: “MADAM JOHNSON”
Alberta then shifts to the process of readying the type for printing. She had her named specified, “MADAM JOHNSON, ALBERTA K.” The printer remarks that her name “looks good / Madam’d that way.” He expresses approval of her using the prefix “Madam” before her last name.
Fourth Stanza: “Shall I use Old English”
The printer asks Alberta what style of lettering she prefers, for example, “Old English” or “Roman”; Alberta replies that she wants him to “Use American.” She insists that “American’s better.” Of course, she is unaware that there is no particular type called “American.” She was simply confused by the foreign sounding “Old English” and “Roman,” which are, of course, part of the American style.
Fifth Stanza: “There's nothing foreign”
Alberta then repeats and emphasizes the importance of keeping her calling cards lettered in the American style. She insists that “there is nothing foreign” about “[her] pedigree.” She then repeats her name, “Alberta K. Johnson” and again restates her nationality, “American that’s me.”
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Linda Sue Grimes - As a writer, researcher, and SRF devotee, Linda Sue Grimes has studied poetry and practiced Kriya Yoga for over thirty years..
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