Literary works created by African American writers during the era of angry social complaints against racial profiling share many similarities in terms of structure and themes. This interrelationship has resulted in literature characterized by expressive social insight, providing informative evaluations of American histories and identities. Moreover, the black American literature has played a critical role in enhancing people’s social consciousness and raising awareness of economic and political disparity in the U.S. In most of their works, black writers have focused on such common themes as social equality, slavery, and racism. Similarly, the theme of suffering is evident across the poems “The Slave Mother”, We Wear the Mask”, and “If We Must Die” by Frances E.W. Harper, Paul Laurence Dunbar, and Claude McKay, respectively.
The issue of suffering emerges as a common theme across the three works of literature. In Harper’s “The Slave Mother”, there is a strong emphasis on the pain and sorrow experienced by an enslaved mother after being separated from her boy child. The poet ensures that the reader can sense the woman’s intense sorrow, “Its every glance was pain, / As if a storm of agony / Were sweeping through the brain” (Harper 10-12). In addition, Harper repeats the phrase “He is not hers” thrice to demonstrate the degree of the slave mother-son attachment (17,19, and 21). Moreover, the black woman lives with the constant fear that her child will also become a slave, “…for cruel hands/ May rudely tear apart/The only wreath of household love” (Harper 21-23). Although the mother has a strong desire to guard her son, the antagonizing reality is that they belong to their white slave master and the child is not truly hers.
Dunbar’s “We Wear the Mask” clearly manifests the issue of agony among black Americans in the face of racial segregation. The poet uses the first stanza to show the plight of the blacks, “This debt we pay to human guile/ With torn and bleeding hearts we smile/ And mouth with myriad subtleties” (Dunbar 3-5). Although Dunbar maintains a resilient tone, the intensity of the mistreatment of African Americans by the white majority is conspicuous throughout the poem. The poet documents, “We smile, but, O great Christ, our cries/ To thee from tortured souls arise/ We sing, but oh the clay is vile” (Dunbar 10-12). Dunbar uses his poem to demonstrate that, even under harsh and painful situations, the oppressed can remain positive.
McKay’s “If We Must Die” also focuses on the anguish encountered by the black minority in the U.S. The poet writes, “If we must die, let it not be like dogs/ Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot” (McKay 1-2). In these statements, McKay seems to be in great despair after facing frequent brutality from the whites. As a result, he urges the blacks to rise and confront their oppressors, “O kinsmen! We must meet the common foe! / Though far outnumbered let us show us brave” (McKay 9-10). In this poem, McKay tries to show the reader that the amount of suffering among African Americans has reached a point where it cannot be tolerated any longer. Despite advising his people to fight for their place in American society, McKay reminds them that their suffering is still far from coming to an end. He pens, “Like men we’ll face the murderous, cowardly pack, / Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!” (13-14). McKay’s work opens the reader’s eye to the predicament of the blacks in America.
The three works by Harper, Dunbar, and McKay can be compared using three peer-reviewed literary criticisms. Starting with Harper’s “The Slave Mother”, Sabaripriyan and Ravi claim that the poet devoted her life to advocating for slavery abolition and equality in numerous social causes, including education (210). The authors argue that “The Slave Mother” revolves around the theme of bondage, which is a form of suppression of an individual’s right to freedom and equal treatment (Sabaripriyan and Ravi 212). Thus, Harper provides readers with an opportunity to see slaves as people who deserve liberty. Similarly, literary criticism of Dunbar’s “We Wear the Mask” points to the historical injustice subjected to African Americans in the U.S. According to Eaves, this poem depicts the state of daily violence that the “North American racial landscape has maintained through imperialism, colonialism, and white supremacy” (22). The writer states that Dunbar used the metaphor, “we wear the mask”, to describe black life’s situation that called for concealment of one’s emotions and identity to participate in a white-dominated society (Eaves 23). These literary critiques reveal the topic of racism in Harper’s and Dunbar’s works.
Still, on comparison of the three poems, literary analysis of Mckay’s “If We Must Die” shows African American literature’s commitment to fighting against oppression of black people. According to Stanutz, McKay communicates with his audience from a revolutionary’s point of view by inciting the blacks to violently fight against racial segregation even if it means sacrificing themselves (32). The author argues that the “poem becomes a lyric mediation on the conditions of social (and even physical) death in the carceral space” (Stanutz 32). This statement discusses McKay’s work from the perspective of the disproportionate incarceration of the blacks in America. Stanutz states that life is ultimately untenable under confinement conditions, and revolution gives meaning to black American’s eventual death (33). Moreover, the writer praises McKay for positioning violent uprisings as his central strategy for dealing with grief and suffering caused by a society that highly upholds white supremacy (Stanutz 34). Furthermore, Stanutz agrees with the poet that revolutionary action certainly yields losses and casualties that accelerate the political cause (40). Although this criticism applauds violent revolution, it shows that the works of Harper, Dunbar, and McKay are protest writings.
In summary, the three works of literature share the theme of suffering. Harper’s “The Slave Mother”, focuses on the pain and grief faced by an enslaved woman after being denied a chance to stay with her boy child. Moreover, Dunbar’s “We Wear the Mask” clearly demonstrates the issue of suffering among black Americans in the face of ethnic profiling. In addition, McKay’s “If We Must Die” also highlights anguish experienced by the black community in America. In the same vein, a comparison of these works can be achieved through three scholarly literary critiques, which show that the poems are protest writings. First, Sabaripriyan and Ravi argue that “The Slave Mother” majors on the abolition of slavery. Second, Eaves states that “We Wear the Mask” reflects daily violence that is meted on the blacks in the U.S. Finally, Stanutz contends that “If We Must Die” is written from a revolutionary perspective, urging the blacks to forcefully resist oppression by the white majority. Noticeably, African American literature not only upholds the black culture, but also demonstrates the importance of shunning racism.
Works Cited
Dunbar, Paul Laurence. “We Wear the Mask.” Poetry Foundation, 2019, Web.
Eaves, Latoya E. “We Wear the Mask.” Southeastern Geographer, vol. 56, no. 1, 2016, pp. 22–28. JSTOR, Web.
Harper, Frances Ellen Watkins. “The Slave Mother.” Poetry Foundation, 2020, Web.
McKay, Claude. “If We Must Die.” Poetry Foundation, 2019, Web.
Sabaripriyan, M., and R. Ravi. “Black Beatings: Beseeching for Liberation-Harper’s Poems.” Black Writings: A Subaltern Perspective, vol. 2, 2018, pp. 210–214, Web.
Stanutz, Katherine. “‘Dying, but Fighting Back’: George Jackson’s Modes of Mourning.” MELUS, vol. 42, no. 1, 2017, pp. 32–52, Web.