How Did Claude Mckay Impact Society

Ivory Spratley
Ms. Lawton
English III
April 5, 2015

Poets and their literature play a major role in today’s society, including the poets and authors coming from places all over the world. America is filled with great poets and authors, from inspiring speeches to collections of novels. Authors from later years were very more clear and distinct with their literary works. As the famous poet and author Claude McKay says “If a man is not faithful to his own individuality, he cannot be loyal to anything.” This is what makes Claude McKay such an impactful author during his time. Claude McKay’s acquaintance with the mix of two world’s, Jamaica and America, have an impact of his works such as “If We Must Die”, “America”, and “The Harlem Dancer” by
He was born into the world as the child of Thomas Francis McKay and his spouse, Hannah Ann Elizabeth Edwards; his parents were both hard working farmers. Claude McKay was born the youngest out of all eleven children, and was sent off at an early stage of his life to go live with his oldest sibling, who was a very successful school teacher. They figured this was a great opportunity for Claude to receive the best education he could possibly get at this time. As an enthusiastic reader, Claude McKay started his journey of writing poetry at the young age of ten. In 1906, Claude McKay made the decision to enroll in trade school. Sadly, the school was completely destroyed when an earthquake occurred. He then made his choice to become great cabinetmaker for a short period of time. In 1907, Claude McKay caught the eye of Walter Jekyll; he was an English, nobleman who lived in Jamaica. Walter Jekyll soon became his mentor. He highly encouraged him to write more of his works in his own dialect
He soon became accepted to the Federal Writers Project in 1936 and was done with his autobiography called A Long Way from Home, in 1937 He gained acceptance to the Federal Writers Project in 1936 and completed his autobiography, A Long Way from Home, in 1937. Meanwhile, Claude McKay no longer had any feeling towards communism, he continued to be socialist, writing essays and articles in The Nation, The New Leader, and the New York Amstedam. News. During the year of 1940, Claude McKay produced a nonfiction part of his many works, Harlem: Negro Metropolis, this gained very little attention but still has very much meaning and is still an important historical source. Claude McKay tried, but he was never able to revive the stature and popularity he had achieved during the 1920s. Claude McKay stated his great financial issues and battles on his race were the problems in causing his sudden failure later on during his life. Claude McKay never did return to his homeland of Jamaica after he left in 1912. He did later become a United States citizen in 1940. Claude McKay’s high blood pressure and heart disease pathed the way to a steady decline in his health. He also did something that surprised all of his friends, leaving agnosticism and took Catholicism into hand. In 1944, Claude McKay left New York City to leave for Chicago,