Claude McKay free essay sample

Claude McKay was one of the most influential figures in twentieth-century African American literature. When mentioning controversial writers, Claude McKay comes to mind. He was first of many African American writers who became known for speaking his mind through literature during the early 1900s. He used his gift of creativity with words to express his feelings on various issues. Claude McKay is an unforgettable African-American writer who was influenced by his culture as well as other writers, which encouraged him to write poetry, novels, and short stories about politics, human rights, and racism. McKay’s culture, background, and important figures formed him into the inspirational writer we know today. Festus Claudius McKay, known as â€Å"Claude,† was the youngest of eleven children. McKay was born on September 15, 1889 on the family farm, Sunny Ville, in central Jamaica to Thomas Francis and Ann Elizabeth McKay (Cagan). Living in central Jamaica, McKay experienced equality in African-Americans. Between 1922 and 1934, McKay lived in Britain, Russia, Germany, France, Spain, and Morocco. During this time period, a new wave of African-American writing, known as the Harlem Renaissance, widely spread across America (Singh). Once he moved to the Unites States at age eighteen, he realized that African-Americans are not treated the same everywhere. By experiencing these different outlooks, McKay was able to expose his views toward his writings. Growing up, McKay met a few inspirational figures that encouraged him to pursue writing. For instance, Edward Jekyll encouraged McKay to explore his native dialect and to write poetry about the world he lives in (Cagan). Hearing the blacks complain about earning a living inspired McKay and that is what his most well known poetry and novels were about, such as Home to Harlem. Another person McKay met was Sinclair Lewis. Lewis gave him â€Å"a few cardinal and practical points about the writing of a book of novel† that McKay says he â€Å"did not forget when I got to writing Home to Harlem†(Grant). McKay became first of many writers who voiced the opinion of the suppressed black people through literature that led him to success. The main ideals of this poet were to raise social conflicts and to inspire his people. In 1917 his first New York publication was in The Seven Arts magazine that published The Harlem Dancer and Invocation (â€Å"Festus †). After these poems were published many were to follow. Another well-known poem by McKay is â€Å"If We Must Die. † In this poem, McKay expresses both love for America and hate for racism. McKay is credited with having inspired the Renaissance with the poem when the nation was gripped with red scare and race riots (Cagan). â€Å"If We Must Die† won him great popularity because it powerfully evoked the mood of African American communities during the time period. McKay published Home to Harlem in 1928, which provides a detailed portrayal of the underside of black urban life, especially with its prostitutes and gamblers. Home to Harlem gained recognition as the first commercially successful novel by a black writer (Grant). McKay continued to write poetry, short stories, and novels that revealed that expressed the moods of blacks’ desperation and defiance that is what he soon became known for. McKay attempted through his career to resolve the complexities surrounding the black man’s contradictory situation. McKay says, â€Å"Color-consciousness was the fundamental of my restlessness. And it was something with which my white fellow-expatriates could sympathize but which they could not altogether understand† (â€Å"Festus†¦). McKay believes, and definitely shows, that whatever race or whatever color, these people should all be treated with equality. In many ways McKay’s writing affected his life, but in even more ways McKay’s life affected his writing. Claude McKay’s poetry and novels work ranged from celebrating peasant life in Jamaica to fairly rebellious poems challenging white authority in America that have found an increasing audience in the recent years. Through time, McKay became known as the fieriest and the most determined black poet. David Goldweber describes McKay as â€Å"steadfast† and â€Å"resolute† (Goldweber). As a writer, McKay never wandered from his attempt to equalize white and black. McKay’s work had a type of musical dialect that emphasized the sharp anger of its subject- racism. Goldweber explains that McKay’s work â€Å"lacked the jazzy inventiveness of Hughes and the stately craftsmanship of Cullen, but it compensated through the sheer force of its honesty and bluntness† (Goldweber). McKay continued to express his opinions through aggression and hostility in his writings. In â€Å"Harlem Shadows†, Goldweber clarifies that McKay showed â€Å"belligerence, sorrow, and hatred† for Western civilization, and rage against separation towards the black community. McKay made it known that he could not shake the sense of something unequalled working in and through human life. Claude McKay became a remarkable poet, novelist, and American Literature writer who was inspired by the society and influential figures that came into his life. McKays viewpoints and poetic achievements in the earlier part of the twentieth century set the tone for the Harlem Renaissance and gained the deep respect of younger black poets of that time. The writings of Claude McKay were constantly changing throughout his life and caused him to be the most dynamic poet of the Harlem Renaissance.