McKay's use of the

A detailed Summary of McKay's use of the


Claude McKay was an important figure during the 1920's in the Harlem Rennaisance. Primarily a poet, McKay used the point of view of the outsider as a prevalent theme in his works. This is best observed in such poems as "Outcast," "America," and "The White House." In these poems, McKay portrays the African-American as the outsiderof western society and its politics and laws and at times, the very land that he is native to.

McKays's poem, "Outcast," is the most obvious example of this outsider theme. From the title to the last line there are many references to a feeling of alienation and neglect. The voice in the poem longs for "the dim regions whence my fathers came." The voice also longs for

"forgotten jungle songs" and yearns to "go back to darkness and to peace." This is the voice of the African-American removed from his native country and made an outsider of his own home. Alienation is also voiced as "I may never hope for full release while to its alien gods I bend my knee." This line illustrates that the speaker is an outsider even where he lives and cannot escape. It would be useless even if he could becaus


In another of McKay's works, "The White House," the African-American as a political outsider is clearly demonstrated. The image invoked in the line "Your door is shut agianst my tightened face," is that of an outsider looking in or wanting in but being shut out. The voice, or point of view of the outsider is once again used consistently throughtout the poem. By referring to the house, the door and the law all as "theirs" and not his, McKay very effectivly illustrates his alienation and disenfranchisement. He is speaking as one looking in on something rather than one that is a part of something. This is the very definition of an "outsider." More political reference can be found in the line where the White House tries to "hold me to the letter of your law." This is most likely criticising the way that white Americans had the full benefit of law, while negroes had the worst of both worlds; being excluded from all its freedoms but included in all its punishments. McKay's "White House" displays the exclusion of the American negro from the politics of the time. This makes for another good example of aliention theme in McKay's works.

The poems "Outcast

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Approximate Word count = 784
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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