If We Must Die Analysis Essay Close Reading

This essay has been submitted by a student. This is non an case of the work written past professional essay writers.

1919, the year the poem was written, was a very difficult time. Globe War I had just ended, and several troops were returning abode. At the aforementioned time the Blackness customs was facing high rates of racially charged brutality. The Negro newspapers were morbid, total of details of clashes between colored and white, murderous shootings and hangings from city to city. From this struggle Claude McKay wrote, If We Must Die, igniting a burn down in the Black community.

The poem itself is written as a Sonnet. They are written in iambic pentameter. 'Iambic' refers to the pattern of unstressed and stressed syllables. One iamb is an unstressed, followed by a stressed syllable: da-DUM. 'Pentameter' tells you how many iambs you'll find per line. 'Penta' ways five – so in that location are five iambs per line. Iambic pentameter. Here's an example from the first line: If we | must die|, let information technology | not exist | like hogs. Composed of xiv lines, a sonnet form is indicative of the meaning. Sonnet's themselves are usually used by poets to evoke religious devotion or romantic love and/or passion. McKay utilizes the sonnets grade to convey these same emotions of devotion and passion within his own piece.

In addition, for the whole poem the rhyme scheme would exist: ABABCDCDEFEFGG. Unremarkably, sonnets include a 'turn.' This is a moment in the poem where the theme or the tone changes in a surprising way. In 'If Nosotros Must Die,' the turn comes at line nine, where the rhyme scheme switches from CD to ED. The speaker calls his kinsmen to action: 'O kinsmen! Nosotros must see the common foe!' This helps to convey the overall purpose of the poem is to serve as a call to activeness. This eludes to the meaning. This call to action helps us to visualize the sonnet as a sort of spoken language. One that is given past a commander to his troops before a monumental battle. The verse form itself is composed of very brusque lines. Understanding the nature of this kind of speeches draws light to the meaning equally to why McKay chose to write the verse form this way. These short lines allow for many pauses when reading the poem out loud. These pauses create a sense of poise, while building a sense of suspense as each of his troops concur on to his words as if information technology is the concluding they will hear. But well-nigh every modernistic movie with a battle scene includes a leader who delivers a pre-battle speech inspiring and empowering his people to persevere and fight. Nosotros picture the speaker of this poem similar the leaders in those movies: a dauntless, noble, inspiring leader fighting on the honorable, but underdog team. Though we don't know who the speaker and his allies are, or why they are fighting, we're confident that at that place'south a lot at stake, and our speaker is on the right side.

Furthermore, McKay utilizes tools such equally symbolism and give-and-take play to best spread the overall meaning of his piece. The dog metaphor, in line 3, decreased the humanity of the enemies by showing how they were neither noble hunters, nor honorable ones. McKay uses a different kind of tool to show how noble and honorable the speaker and his allies are the illustration. The speaker insists that his allies not die like hogs, in line ane. That is to say, he prefers that they die like men. As well, pigs don't commonly die in whatever mode that seems noble. They are normally slaughtered without sympathy. Also, 'hog' is a specific kind of pig. Hogs are castrated, male pigs, and castration is a symbol for powerlessness. The speaker is trying to encourage his allies to manly, noble, and brave in the confront of death, and hogs are the opposite in the speaker's eyes.

Additionally, McKay has recurring themes throughout the verse form to create meaning. The biggest i being Dignity/Laurels. Honor runs throughout the other themes of 'If We Must Dice,' and information technology is the underlying idea of the verse form. The speaker feels that on his side are the 'expert guys,' considering they are honorable men and will only fight honorably. The fact is, they are not fighting for survival; they already know they will die. They volition fight honorably and so that their death will not exist meaningless, and and then that, maybe, their enemy will honor them in death.

In conclusion, Mckay's verse form provides a skilful glimpse of his beliefs. Throughout the poem, he states repeatedly that blacks must be willing to die for their rights. This contrasts with some African-American leaders, such as Booker T. Washington, who believed that good hearted white people would aid the black people that the blacks should accept their help. McKay's more than militant approach is seen in the phrases, "if nosotros must dice," "permit the states nobly die," "Accolade usa though dead" and "Pressed to the wall, dying." McKay uses all the readers' senses to best create the meaning and scene he is wanting to convey.

If We Must Die Analysis Essay Close Reading

Source: https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/literary-analysis-of-if-we-must-die-by-claude-mckay/

Share this post