Literary Techniques Used by Claude McKay in His Works

All people will meet various discrimination when they are in the society. However, can they resist? Probably not because resistance is possibly disadvantageous to them and even their life will be dangerous. Nevertheless, sometimes we shouldn’t let others tread on our own profit easily and we must stand up bravely and fight with enemies, just like Claude Mckay. He doesn’t want to yield to the status quo because in, he uses a vehement and exciting tone in order to encourage all the people who are suffering terrible discrimination, unfair treatment, and immoral overexploitation to resist tenaciously. The author’s vehement and indignant tone is seen powerfully through his use of aggressive diction. In the second and the fourth line of this poem, “Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot” and “Making their mock at our accursed lot”, Claude Mckay has established an unfortunate and depressed atmosphere which further emphasizes his exciting and furious tone. It’s because he uses “an inglorious spot” and “accursed lot” to emphasize the tragic condition which vulnerable groups are, because “inglorious” and “accursed” are usually to modify something very severe which will probably even threat to life, and “lot” is also a formal word that usually used to describe some special and important periods. The author also uses Imagery to make readers situate themselves in the same state so that they can more understand that many people were living in an abyss of misery at that time, just like in the sentence “While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs”. It makes the readers scared as if they are living in the dirty and dark prison and there are many hungry dogs barking outside. Further more, Claude Mckay wants to show his own tone so he uses “Like men we’ll face the murderous, cowardly pack,” and “Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!” to show a kind of furious, resistant, and adamant tone. These sentences make readers think although they are been pressing on the wall by the murderous and cowardly pack, dying, but they haven’t gave up and are still fighting. The sentences give readers both a sense of tremendous urgency and a strong will and bravery.

The tone of is amplified deeply by the author’s use of Details to make the main idea and the tone of this poem clearer. For example, Claude Mckay uses Details in the first four lines. After “let it not be like hogs”, he explains deeply what condition may seem “like hogs” by using “Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot” so that readers can understand the specific meaning of “like hogs” it means living dirty and low life. In “While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs “, the author uses Details that “Making their mock at our accursed lot” to emphasize the depressing tone and make it more dreary and terrifying, because this detail can indicate that even dogs spurn this kind of dirty and low life. Certainly, from my perspective, nothing is more noteworthy than the use of Syntax by Claude Mckay in this poem. Take the ninth line for example, the author uses “Oh, Kinsmen!”, nevertheless, it is even not a complete sentence. So, the author uses a special Syntax here to convey his intense appeal that the situation of vulnerable groups is at stake, that there is no time for hesitation, and they must now unite against enemies. Throughout the poem, Claude Mckay’s impassioned tone is illustrated in his diction, imagery, details, and syntax. Exploiting these techniques help the readers understand his sympathy to the people who are suffering terrible discrimination, unfair treatment and immoral overexploitation and appeal that he hopes these people will stand up bravely and fight against enemies tenaciously.