America

A.D
AP Literature – Period 1
TPS-FASTT

Poem: America Poet: Claude McKay
America
Although she feeds me bread of bitterness,
And sinks into my throat her tiger's tooth,
Stealing my breath of life, I will confess
I love this cultured hell that tests my youth.

Her vigor flows like tides into my blood, 5
Giving me strength erect against her hate,
Her bigness sweeps my being like a flood.
Yet, as a rebel fronts a king in state, I stand within her walls with not a shred
Of terror, malice, not a word of jeer. 10
Darkly I gaze into the days ahead,
And see her might and granite wonders there, Beneath the touch of Time's unerring hand,
Like priceless treasures sinking in the sand.
-Claude McKay (American 1890-1948)

Explication: The poem’s title ‘America’ presents the complications of McKay as a Jamaican immigrant living in America. The poem is a sonnet written in iambic pentameter consisting of three quatrains and a concluding couplet. In the first quatrain he introduces how oppressive America is to him while simultaneously expressing how he loves it. McKay personifies America as a mother: “Although she feeds me bread of bitterness, /And sinks into my throat her tiger’s tooth,/Stealing my breath of life, I will confess” (1-3). Mothers have a connotation of being in charge, as they are the guardians of all their children. His personification of America as a mother helps demonstrate how powerful America is and helps the reader understand the capabilities of its cruelty. The feeding of the “bread of bitterness” is used as a metaphor to demonstrate how harsh America is to McKay. If one is to imagine a tiger’s tooth being shoved in his or her throat, or perhaps one’s life force slowly being extracted, it would feel very painful and impossible to breathe. McKay also uses these as analogies to help show how cruel and suffocating America is. The bitterness of the bread and the tiger’s tooth represents America’s oppression.
In the second quatrain, McKay speaks about how America gives him inner-strength. Despite America’s brutality, McKay loves it, which seems ironic: “I love this cultured hell that tests my youth/Her vigor flows like tides into my blood/Giving me strength against her hate/Her bigness sweeps my being like a flood” (4-7). The hardship he experiences in America gives him strength and he is grateful for America for enabling him to find that strength. McKay’s use of simile by comparing America’s power to waves and floods creates an image and shows the reader how massive an effect it has on him. His diction, for instance the phrases, “Her vigor flows” and “Her bigness sweeps” helps complement the similes and gives them a greater impact on the reader. McKay then speaks about his resistance towards America’s ruthlessness. Although America is a giant country, McKay is willing stand up against it: “as a rebel fronts a king in state” (8). He uses this as a metaphor to demonstrate how confident and unafraid he is against America's authority.
In the last quatrain, McKay speaks about his feelings and contemplates America's future. McKay is just as human as any other man living in America; his skin color does not define him as someone who is malicious. He “stands within her walls with not a shred/Of terror, malice, not a word of jeer” (9-10). McKay uses these words to express his humanity and how he has no intention of doing anything evil or saying anything insulting. The word “shred” emphasizes his humanity even more by showing how there isn't even a tiny piece of malice inside of him. He uses the word “wall” as a metaphor of America being a prison; a place where there is no freedom. McKay thinks about the future of America: “Darkly I gaze into the days ahead,/And see her might and granite wonders there” (11-12). He realizes how mighty America is and appreciates it. However, in the final couplet, he does not believe America is as prosperous as it should be. He sees America “beneath the touch of Time's unerring hand” (13) and how America is wasting time “like priceless treasures sinking in the sand” (14). He personifies time by giving it a hand and a sense of touch. McKay uses a simile to compare African Americans to treasures. He believes black people are as valuable as treasure, and can do great things for America. Unfortunately, America neglects the “treasures” because it has such a racist culture. America does not allow blacks to prosper, which ultimately leads to their “sinking” because so much time is being wasted hating them.