What struck me most of about Claude McKay's poems were his profoundly sad and negative views of America. This was a surprise at first, as most literature read in school paints the picture of America as the land of dreams and freedom. The White House, for example paints a picture of an entire world where the "door is shut against [his] tightened face". In America, McKay references the country's "hate" and says that it feeds him "bread of bitterness". In The Negro Dancers, McKay expresses bewilderment at the ability of African-Americans to express such joy and fun through dance: "How can they thus consent to joy and mirth/ Who live beneath a world-eternal ban". McKay's view of America is through the lens of oppression and discrimination.
Whats interesting is that McKay does not seem to count himself among those dancing masses. His thoughts remain negative despite the dancing and fun he describes. This may be because McKay is an immigrant, and thus not used to the race relations that are unique to America. He was born in Jamaica, and his memories of that country often echo in his poems. The Tropics in New York is a poem about how the fruit stands in New York bring back sweet memories of his native land, causing him to weep. Home Thoughts is similarly a yearning for the memories of his homeland. The incredible contrast of McKay's writing about America compared to his writing about Jamaica makes me wonder what Jamaica was like in comparison to the United States at the time of his writing.
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I noticed the major contrast that McKay depicted in writing about Jamaica and the United States also. McKay almost idealizes Jamaica by describing its beauty, the variety of fruits, and other positive attributes of the country. This is a definite contrast to his portrayal of the United States. He focuses on the discrimination and oppression that plagued America during this time.
I got confused by this. I wonder if it was worst to be an immigrant or a black person during this time period. How would they even be able to know he was an immigrant anyways besides the fact that he despised the United States. I wonder why he just didn't move back?
I, too, thought that it was strange that McKay excludes himself from the positive aspects of America. He admits he is still drawn to the "cultured hell" of America, and composes an entire poem about the beautiful dancers in a Harlem nightclub (The Harlem Dancer), but yet he refuses to include himself in the merriment that is developing in the city around him. Why is this? Why does he view America as such a negative place if his homeland in the BWI was just as, if not MORE, segregated and racially divided? And if he missed the BWI so much, what kept him living and struggling in America? McKay leaves us, as readers, with several unanswered questions.
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