Although Claude McKay was born and raised in Jamaica he is also an important African American voice. He lived in America for a period of time, and wrote some intense poetry as part of the Harlem Renaissance. I thought it was interesting that McKay chose to write some of his poetry in sonnet form. He used a very traditional structure for his somewhat radical poetry. Although his sonnets are not exactly in the perfect sonnet style, he does choose the sonnet. He uses a structure that shows he is educated and has a command of the language while expressing some ideas on the wilder side. His role as an outsider is distinct and disturbing.
The three sonnets I want to focus on are "If We Must Die," "Outcast" and "America." All of these poems were published in the
Liberator
, a New York magazine of the 1920s
.
McKay even worked for the magazine for a period of time. These poems have a strong message about being African American. In "If We Must Die," McKay is urging people to fight back against injustice. He wants African Americans to fight back literally. He says, "And for their thousand death blows deal one deathblow!" (McKay 984) and "Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!" (McKay 984) This is a very different message from what we heard earlier from King. In "Outcast" McKay depicts the experience of the African American and identifies him or her as estranged from society. This truly identifies him as an outsider. This estrangement is a direct result of the white man's influence. He says, "For I was born, far from my native clime,/ Under the white man's menace, out of time" (McKay 987). Finally I would like to discuss "America." In this poem there is a sign of hope. McKay declares that he hates America but admires its strength. He says, "I love this cultured hell that tests my youth!" (McKay 985) I think it's a good idea to end on a more positive note but not take away from the aggression and antiestablishment elements of the poetry.
Studying the prosody of the sonnets should surely be an objective. Like King, McKay uses many literary devices such as alliteration, simile, and metaphor. The meter of the poem would also be interesting to identify. We should discuss Frost's "sound of sense" in relation to the poetry. How does McKay's poetry sound in relation to what he is saying?
When introducing the poems, I would like to have the students read the poem out loud. I would then have the students reread the poem to themselves underlining any line or word that stood out to them. When the students read the poem out loud again, I would have all of the students read their underlined sections out loud with the primary reader. Once we have read the poem a few times and the students get a feel for it, I will have them write about the poem. I want them to write about one line or word in the poem and discuss why it is important, and then we will all discuss what they have written.
Miguel Pinero's poems "La Bodega Sold Dreams," "The Book of Genesis According to St. Miguelito," and "Seekin' the Cause" are powerful as well. I tested out the poems "La Bodega Sold Dreams" and "The Book of Genesis According to St. Miguelito" on a few of my classes this year. I was pleased to note that some of the students were excited about the content and language used in the poem. In "The Book of Genesis According to St. Miguelito" he begins the poem with, "Before the beginning/ God created God/ In the beginning/ God created ghettos & slums" (Pinero 349) The mention of ghettos was exciting to some of the students. This was something they were familiar with. The language as well as the environment it describes is something they rarely read about in school but deals with the lives they lead. The Latino students in particular were truly engaged in the lesson. It was something closer to home than, let's say, The Odyssey. They were impressed by the fact that he used Spanish in the poem with the English. They were excited to read the nonstandard English. In "La Bodega Sold Dreams", which we read first, Pinero writes, "i dreamt i was this poeta/ words glitterin' brite & bold/ strikin' a new rush for gold/ in las bodegas" (Pinero 347) Students immediately dove into the language of the poem. They started asking questions. "Why does he use Spanish?" was one question. In "The Book of Genesis According to St. Miguelito" the religious allusions caused a stir. The students also debated the meaning of "and the people were cool" (Algarin & Holman 351). At one point a frustrated student said, "Why doesn't he do something about it instead of just complaining?" This was a good time to discuss whether or not literature and art are "doing something" or not. I think this is an important issue to discuss. Even if this issue has not been made clear by this point I may bring it up again. I want the students to see how powerful their own voices can be.
In a community as diverse as the Sound School, it is very important to represent the many voices of America. I am sure this is true for any school environment, but it is crucial to expose students to the literature of their own culture. At the Sound School there are students of different races, religions, socio-economics and styles. Because it attracts students from the various surrounding communities, the Sound School has an extremely eclectic student body.
One strategy I will use in teaching these poems will be to have students generate "I wonder why" statements about the poetry. Students will create their own questions in their journals. Then we will share their questions and record them on the board and in the journals. Once the "I wonder why" statements are recorded students will select two to respond to. They should come up with their own responses to the questions. Students will share their responses and hopefully this will prompt a discussion about the poetry.
The Pinero poems are critical of the conditions of the poor. Pinero's style differs from McKay's greatly. They use different language and different structure for their poetry. McKay uses a very "civilized" approach. He uses standard English and the sonnet form. On the other hand, Pinero uses non-standard English and Spanish in his poetry while using free verse. Nevertheless they comment on problems in society as an outsider. Therefore it would be fitting for the students to write a comparison paper at this juncture. This is another piece to go into the journal. Only one draft is required at this time. Still, I will have students engage in peer evaluations and teacher conferences.
