We Like It Wild

“If We Must Die” (1922) - Claude McKay

“If we must die, let it not be like hogs

Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot,

While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,

Making their mock at our accursed lot.

If we must die, O let us nobly die,

So that our precious blood may not be shed

In vain; then even the monsters we defy

Shall be constrained to honor us though dead!

O kinsmen! We must meet the common foe!

Though far outnumbered let us show us brave,

And for their thousand blows deal one deathblow!

What though before us lies the open grave?

Like men we'll face the murderous, cowardly pack,

Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!”

This poem reminds me very much of Beowulf, and yes makes me want to crush a Coke can against my head and scream very loudly. This of course evokes the imagery of Beowulf fighting his last distinguished battle to the death at a ripe old age. Written shortly after WWI, the poem most likely summarizes the immensity and scope of such a war, and the sharp division, and contrastingly the brotherhood that inevitably occurred as well. One thing that is usually said of poetry is that it attempts to ward off apathy, indifference, and complacency. At the very least I can say that “If We Must Die” achieves this. I realize that I am writing a purely emotional response, but everything about this poem quickens the blood, and allows adrenaline to flow easily. Thematically it recalls the age old need of men to make legacies. Similar to another poem I analyzed in a previous blog post, “Ulysses,” “If We Must Die” contains the same imperialistic, testosterone-filled musings. Likewise, Heart of Darkness also possesses the same themes against mortal flaws. Ultimately this piece is just another in a vast collection of pieces based on the popular views of the time. How starkly it differentiates from modern sentiments; passionate then, while we are now passionless.

As mentioned above this poem conjures images of limitless unity and admirable temerity. Only through the perfection of rhyme, rhythm, and the use of inclusive pronouns does McKay successfully accomplish this. To establish such smooth and natural rhythm, McKay adapts the sonnet to fit his needs. McKay uses the usual a-b-a-b, c-d-c-d, e-f-e-f, g-g rhyming pattern of the sonnet, but deviates occasionally from iambic pentameter. As a line contains more than ten syllables, McKay places emphasis on an important phrase to incite the reader, such as with the final line of the poem. Also “making their mock at our accursed lot” contains rhyme in the same line, as if to provoke anger in the reader, as the tone drips with disdain. More importantly than all these factors McKay utilizes inclusive pronouns to unify the reader with the content of the text, and make the work more emotionally appealing in general. As an amateur writer I think that I tend to shy away from inclusive pronouns, as I fear misuse and being inadvertently cliché. However, I feel that McKay provides a perfect example of how inclusive pronouns ought to be used in writing.

Connections to Emphasis on Death in Literature and Human Reality

"This Is a Photograph of Me" (1966) - Margaret Atwood

"(The photograph was taken

the day after I drowned.

I am in the lake, in the center

of the picture, just under the surface.

It is difficult to say where

precisely, or to say

how large or small I am:

the effect of water

on light is a distortion

but if you look long enough,

eventually

you will be able to see me.)"

The intimate self reflections that flow through the poem, make it clear that Margaret Atwood uses the classic Greek myth of Narcissus to make assertions about current pyschological climates within our society. Narcissus fell in love with his reflection so much that he could not stop staring at his reflection in a lake, finally he met his death as he tried to join with it. Obviously in content „This Is a Photograph of Me“ parallels that of Narcissus, as Atwood nonchalantly describes the drowned body of a person in a picture.The first-person perspective of the poem, and the central focus of the body in the captured scene helps to convey the self-obsession apparent in Narcissus. The fact the poem describes a photo reflects modern obsession with pictures and filming oneself and the moments that comprise a life, and put undue emphasis on one person's existence, just as Narcissus did. However, while the narrator's focus is on his or her dead body, with lines like "It is difficult to say where precisely, or to say how large or small I am," and "the effect of water on light is a distortion" tell the audience that the body may not be visually evident or major in the photo being described. These facts translate Atwood's main theme. By relating the poem to the tale of Narcissus, the reader can infer that the narrator's death was self-imposed, like that of suicide. Although contrastingly the scene does not revolve around the death, only its telling. This gives the message that suicide and death do not stop the world, nor perhaps majorly affect it, but does seep through eventually. In the end we can see that the narrator's body represents the inevitable, as it was for Narcissus, but without the permanance and vanity that most people fantasize and imagine. The slow realization of death, as with the realization of a dead body in a picturesque landscape, without emphasis or immense importance thus becomes more horrifying than the tragic and poetic deaths we all dream of. 

The first person perspective within this poem, gives it the eccentricity that makes it so effective. The reader pays attention to the narrator foremost in the poem, allowing for the themes to become more subtle. This subtlety of theme reflects the subtlety of death, thus making the poem more striking, as the audience slowly comes to the truth just as the narrator describes in the poem "eventually you will be able to see me.“ The first person perspective also makes the narrator's dead body less dramatic and important. Third person views in such matters make death seem grand, poetic, and meaningful which would be the opposite of what Atwood wishes to convey to her readers, and would simply be copying the significance of Narcissus, instead of being ironic in connection to it. I believe that the first person perspective is often avoided in poetry, because it is so hard to effectively pull off, and because the imagery of the third person is so appealing to mere mortals. Using it in such a way makes Atwood brave and daring in her exploits to expose the human condition and reality of nature in her poem.

Triumphant Change

"Africa" (1975) - Maya Angelou

“Thus she had lain

sugar cane sweet

deserts her hair

golden her feet

mountains her breasts

two Niles her tears

Thus she has lain

Black through the years.

Over the white seas

rime white and cold

brigands ungentled

icicle bold

took her young daughters

sold her strong sons

churched her with Jesus

bled her with guns.

Thus she has lain.

Now she is rising

remember her pain

remember the losses

her screams loud and vain

remember her riches

her history slain

now she is striding

although she had lain.”

Angelou obviously speaks to the long and brutal history of African slaves and their descendants. She incorporates geographic imagery while describing physical characteristics in order to introduce African ancestry, such as “deserts,” “mountains,” and “Niles.” Accurately portraying the white captors of her race, Maya Angelou associates white with the cold harshness of winter precipitation and brewing ocean waves. These associations define not only the white man's cruelty, but also the Middle Passage and the change in climate for African slaves. Each stanza represents a particular phase in African history. The first stanza depicts the homeland: warm, beautiful, natural. The second stanza relates the horrors of slavery: the seizure, and decades of implications. The third expresses a present victory for those of African descent, overcoming tremendous abuse and racism, to becoming free and proud in society.

Some techniques that caught my eye in “Africa” were the use of past versus present tense in repeating lines, and effective rhyming schemes. Angelou constantly reuses “Thus she had lain,” and “Thus she has lain.” throughout her poem. Mostly the author does this to signify what has and hasn't changed in society for those of African descent. When describing skin color she uses “has lain,” to imply that race has been constant through the years. Also when recounting the history of African slaves she utilizes the present “has lain,” to convey to the reader that history cannot be changed. However, Angelou applies the past tense “had lain” to “sugar cane sweet” and after “now she is striding.” This demonstrates a change from passive acceptance of abuse, to firm strength and placement in society of African Americans, and those of African descent everywhere. The differentiation between the past and present helps to effectively impart thematic meaning to the reader through repetition, and the subtle distinctions between “has” and “had.” Also Angelou purposely employs a discordant rhyming scheme within the first two stanzas to create certain tones and themes, allowing for an ultimate catharsis for the reader. By using limited rhyming within the first few stanzas, the consistent rhyming in the last stanza becomes significant, and catches the audience's attention. The persistent and unchanging rhymes in the end also mirror the tone of triumphant liberation from caged desperation. With strength, the rhyme ties up the last stanza and accents the reoccurring line “she had lain,” making the poem dramatic and effective to the end. The concept of varying rhyming and repetition intrigues and surprises me. I am stunned how such easy tools could be so ingenious and emphatic. Obviously the use of the same tactics in writing could help to make themes more potent, without being overly unctuous.