If We Must Die By Claude Mckay - 1161 Words

â€Å"What is equality?† one might ask. We all have different views on specific topics and can describe what something truly means to one’s self like in the 3 text, â€Å"I have a dream,† by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr (published; 8/28/1963, genre; narrative and argumentative), â€Å"If we must die,† by Claude Mckay (published; 1919, genre; narrative and lyric), â€Å"Harrison Bergeron,† by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (published; October 1961, genre; satirical dystopian science-fiction short story). In all 3 texts the authors are giving their touch on equality. Equality can convey being treated the same when a colored and a white man/woman are next to each other as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr says. You can also see equality as Mckay who thinks it’s being on the same level of strength and worth as a white man being in the shoes of a colored man. Or equality can be being exactly the same in every way as anyone around you in every exact way in Vonnegut†™s eyes. All these 3 authors have a particular view on how to answer â€Å"What is equality?† and we can compare their ideas. Dr. Martin Luther King emphasizes in his speech â€Å"I have a dream,† how the colored are not treated the same and not a seen as an equal human to the whites. â€Å"One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land.† (Dr.Martin Luther King Jr., page 1). A colored is regarded less than a white person as the text communicates. â€Å"We will be able to speed up that day whenShow MoreRelatedIf We Must Die By Claude Mckay1237 Words   |  5 PagesThe poem â€Å"If We Must Die† by Claude McKay is not only a sonnet, but also a story that portrays so much more than what first meets the eye. The poem is discussing a group of people who are going off to battle. The narrator of the poem is preparing the group to die, but implying that they must die with honor and in a noble way. The group has been pressed into a corner and there is no way out without a fight and warns them that death is m ost likely in their future. This poem sheds light into the authorRead MoreIf We Must Die By Claude Mckay1665 Words   |  7 PagesThe poem â€Å"If We Must Die† is written by African American author, Claude McKay. â€Å"If We Must Die† was written just a few decades after slavery was abolished. It was created at a time when blacks were highly discriminated and segregation was common. Mckay life was filled with hardships, especially as a writer. Roger M. Valade III said The United States proved not to be the land of opportunity for which McKay had hoped. Editors of larger publications refused his work because he sympathized withRead MoreIf We Must Die By Claude Mckay983 Words   |  4 PagesClaude McKay’s 1919 sonnet, â€Å"If We Must Die†, came at a time when African-American lives were conditional, and seemingly dependent on the actions of the white community. McKay’s choice to write his poem in the form of a Shakespearean sonnet, a form u sually reserved for flowery love language, could be attributed to either establishing his worth as a writer to a community not so accepting of black writers and/or to use an easily understood format to convey the strong message of injustice within AmericanRead MoreIf We Must Die By Claude Mckay959 Words   |  4 Pagesdanger, the esteemed poet Claude McKay boldly spoke out against the cruelty shown towards his people. In his poem If We Must Die, McKay encourages blacks and commands them to stand and fight against the misdeeds committed by whites. Instead of asking blacks to accept their fate or to uselessly flee from the threat of death, McKay dares them to stare death in the face and to fight against the power that whites try to hold over them. In his sonnet If We Must Die, McKay uses bestial imagery, biblicalRead MoreEssay on If We Must Die by Claude McKay725 Words   |  3 PagesIf We Must Die by Claude McKay Clearly provocative and even chilling, â€Å"If We Must Die† by Claude McKay stirs deep and powerful emotions in any who reads it. A poem inspired by violent race riots, it serves as a motivating anthem representative of an entire culture. Graphic and full of vengeance this poem is demanding action, not telling a story. McKay utilizes imagery to its fullest extent creating an end result which any man or woman, black or white, who has ever felt the hard and hatefulRead MoreAn Analysis Of If We Must Die By Claude Mckay925 Words   |  4 Pagesor as small as just some helpful words are enough to overcome an adversary. In the poem, â€Å"If We Must Die†, Claude McKay uses the literary tools of tone, and hyperboles to convey the meaning of bravery and encouragement through the words of a commander performing a battle cry with his fellow soldiers. The tone of hopefulness is conveyed in the poem through the style and diction of the author. McKay writes on how the soldiers, â€Å"Shall be constrained to honor us though dead!† (8). This is aboutRead MoreSimiles In If We Must Die By Claude Mckay868 Words   |  4 PagesClaude McKay was a Jamaican poet who brought hopefulness to the oppressed during the Harlem Renaissance in his poem, â€Å"If We Must Die†. McKay experienced the hardships that colored people were going through because of their race and nationality. He believed that the people should fight for what they believe in, even if it seems like a hopeless cause. McKay uses the concept of dying with dignity to persuade his fellow African-Americans that are being oppressed to fight for what they believe in.Read MoreComparison Of Claude Donne And Claude Mckay And If We Must Die1769 Words   |  8 PagesWhat is your life amount to, if you hadn’t made an impact? Death is a part of life yet many people are afraid of it and are not ready for it when their time comes. The poems that I chose that impacted me is â€Å"If We Must Die† by Claude McKay and â€Å"Death Be Not Proud† By John Do nne. These poems impacted me because I thought it was interesting the difference in the thought process about a subject that impossible to escape. These two poems are talking about experiencing death and when it does come thatRead MoreIf We Must Die by: Claude Mckay (Analysis Paper)1084 Words   |  5 PagesShaymeon Robertson AP English Literature If We Must Die By: Claude McKay If We Must Die, by Claude McKay is a sonnet written during the Harlem Renaissance period; a period where there was a flowering of African-American literature and art, (1919- mid 1930s). Though the Harlem Renaissance period was a time of thriving people and culture in the African-American community, prejudice was still very much active; somethingRead MoreAnalysis Of Claude Mckay s If We Must Die 928 Words   |  4 PagesClaude McKay (1889-1948) moved to America from Jamaica in the early 1900’s. He moved several times before settling in Harlem, New York where he became an important part of the Harlem Renaissance. During his life in America, he wrote numerous pieces of literature from essays, short stories, poems, and more. In the early 1900’s, life in the South was difficult for colored people because of segregation. Thus, the experience of racism motivated him to write poetry. He wrote about peasant life in Jamaica