African-American literature
Introduction
The history of African-American is a vast and varied field that awaits to be discovered. In the early 20th century African American grew more prominent in the field of poetry, Claude Mckay wrote If We Must Die in the year 1919, he is a renowned poet of his time. He was am important figure in the Harlem Renaissance, a movement that was centered in New York, in the Harlem Neighborhood. Toni Morrison wrote Beloved in 1987, it is set after the civil war that took place in America.
The story in the novel Beloved, begins in 1873, where the protagonist is a African-American slave who lives with her daughter and mother in law, she had two sons who had run away, Morrison gives the name Sethe, to her main protagonist. Her sons fled to escape the ghost that had haunted their house in 124Bluestone for many years. She begins her book with an introduction to the ghost story. The major characters in the novel include; Sethe, who is the main protagonist, Beloved, who is believed to the child ghost that haunted their house, Paul D, who is a former slave of sweet home, Denver the only left child of Sethe, Baby Sugg, who is the former owner of the haunted house that Seth occupied. Halle, is Sethe’s husband, school teacher and Amy Denver (Lowne, n.d).
If We Must Die, focuses on struggles that African-American’s in the United States, in particular the prejudice they faced, he fills his poem with range and urges his fellow African-American to take action. He wrote this poem as a response to what is currently referred to as The Red Summer of 1919, this summer was marked by hate crime and general violence against the black community mostly those who lived in Chicago, Elaine and Washington D.C. The violence resulted to loss of homes and uncountable number of lives. This poem is short but it brings out his message clearly. The first three line in the poem helps him establishes that the black community is being hunted by the whites. They are being hunted by angry dogs and he is urging his fellow people not to become weak. Attacking back may led to their deaths but it is important they don’t stand back and do nothing (Surber, n.d).
This poem gained world wide fame when Sir. Winston Churchill quoted to it to inspire British during the second world war “if we must, let it not be like the hogs; hunted and penned in an inglorious spot. If We Must Die, O let us nobly die. Like men we will face the murderous; cowardly pack. Pressed to the wall pressed but fighting back” (Thompson, 2016). These were his exact words that led to world wide fame of the poem by Mckay. This poem is not known to win any prize, it is well known since it resonates through the history of America due to its universal message. The poem has acted as an encouraging statement to those who are confronting injustice. When America was fighting for civil rights Jordan read this poem to those who had assembled to encourage them to fight for civil rights. The poem has continuously been used in many occasions, in 1971, prisoners at Attica Correctional Facility they quoted lines similar to those of the Mckay’s poem (Thompson, 2016). Its constant use has contributed to its worldwide fame.
Beloved by Morrison which tell of the agonizing story of a slave was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in the year 1988, Beloved had been the center of controversy when it failed to win the National book awards, 48 African American writers wrote to protest that she had never been awarded the National book award and the Pulitzer Prize. Morrison herself acknowledged that her book was really worth world-wide recognition (Hevesi, 1988).
Civil rights is a discussion that surround these two works of literature, Beloved is set in the Post-Civil War Ohio (Hevesi, 1988). While Mckays poem was written before the civil rights but has been used by Jordan in a gathering to encourage people to continue fighting for civil rights (Thompson, 2016). These works of literature are set at different times but both share a common thematic expression, the protagonist in Beloved is a former slave to a white man who escapes from this bondage, her struggle with slavery is a badge of honor. In the poem the black man is oppressed by the white man by use of constant violence, some loss their homes and lives while fighting and this acts as a badge of honor since they died fighting back. Oppression is a theme that is common in these two works of literature. This theme has been greatly illustrated and well brought out despite the time difference in this two works.
Morrisons book can be termed as one of the most important books of the 20th century. It addresses the historical reality of African-American enslavement and the physical and psychological effects that came with it (Lowne, n.d). At one point or another the history of enslavements still haunts them even after it was abolished. Morrisons work clearly indicate that history has its haunting effects. Mckay’s poem is associated period that also Marks violence that African-American faced. Both of these works reflect on the history and culture of African-American.
Conclusion
Mckay wrote his poem If We Must Die in the year 1919, Toni Morrison wrote her fictional book in 1987. Mckay’s poem is an encouragement to the black man to fight the violence and hate crime that he was facing during the period referred to as the red summer of 1919. His work has not won any prize in literature but has gained world-wide fame due to its constant use, Churchill made use of it while making his speech , which was meant to encourage the British to push further with the civil war, prisoners also used similar lines to that of it while protesting. Lastly, Jordan used it to encourage people to fight for their civil right. Beloved by Morrison was set in the post-civil-war period, it narrates the life and the events surrounding the main protagonist who is a former slave. This work won the Pulitzer Prize in 1988, which made it world-wide famous. They can both be associated with civil rights in America, the poem has been used to encourage people to fight for civil rights while the novel has been set after the civil war. These two works of literature are set in different time but they have impacted the cultural landscape of the African-Americans since they are a reminder of their bitter history.
References
Hevesi, D. (1988). Toni Morrison’s Novel ‘Beloved’ Wins the Pulitzer Prize in Fiction. Retrieved from; https://www.nytimes.com/1988/04/01/nyregion/toni-morrison-s-novel-beloved- wins-the-pulitzer-prize-in-fiction.html
Lowne, C.(n.d). Beloved Nobel by Morrison. Retrieved from; https://www.britannica.com/topic/beloved-novel-by-morrison
Surber. K. (n.d). If We Must Die By Claude McKay: Summary, Theme &Analysis. Retrieved from; https://study.com/academy/lesson/if-we-must-die-by-claude-mckay-summary- theme-analysis.html.
Thompson, A. (2016) “If We Must Die” In Civil Rights-Era America”. Retrieved from; https://scalar.lehigh.edu/mckay/if-we-must-die-in-america
