What is the meaning of the poem If we must die by Claude McKay?
“If We Must Die” is a Shakespearean sonnet written by the Jamaican poet Claude McKay in 1919. It is a poem of political resistance: it calls for oppressed people to resist their oppressors, violently and bravely—even if they die in the struggle.Click to see full answer. Herein, why did Claude McKay write if we must…
“If We Must Die” is a Shakespearean sonnet written by the Jamaican poet Claude McKay in 1919. It is a poem of political resistance: it calls for oppressed people to resist their oppressors, violently and bravely—even if they die in the struggle.Click to see full answer. Herein, why did Claude McKay write if we must die?If We Must Die. “If We Must Die” is a poem by Claude McKay published in the July 1919 issue of The Liberator. McKay wrote the poem as a response to mob attacks by white Americans upon African-American communities during Red Summer.One may also ask, what is the purpose of the first 4 lines? These first four lines establish the basic premise of the poem: the speaker and his allies are under attack and are going to die, and the force opposing them is powerful and vicious. Subsequently, question is, how does if we must die relate to the Harlem Renaissance? Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back! This poem shows the rebelliousness of the period in respect to the disrespect that African Americans received just because of the color of their skin. This poem uses metaphors of dogs and monsters creating the connotation of a great evil attacking a helpless people.What message does the persona forward to his allies?”To fight even though you’re dying.” The author is telling his allies that to die honorably is to fight even though fight is not, to fight even though they know that they’re going to die, to fight to their dying breath, because that’s how you can make your life meaningful.
