Two poets
Identify any two poets from Module 2 whose work interests you and who lived and wrote in roughly the same time and place. (The biographies at the end of the “Poetry” section in the textbook might be a helpful place to start.) Then do a bit of research. Did your two poets have similar backgrounds? Are they considered part of the same or competing “movements” or “schools”? Drawing on your research, write an essay in which you compare at least one poem by each poet and explore how the poems were shaped by historical and cultural context.
Two poets who lived and wrote in roughly the same time and place are Countee Cullen and Claude McKay. Both men were born in Jamaica, then moved to the United States as adults, living at different times in Harlem during the Harlem Renaissance.
Countee Cullen was born in 1903 and is considered one of the most important figures of the era (Gossett 1997). His work often explored themes of racial identity and assimilation into American culture. His style was heavily influenced by traditional English verse, with influences from French Symbolism (Love 2019). He had a few writing partners throughout his life, including Langston Hughes.
Claude McKay also grew up in Jamaica before moving to America as an adult in 1912 (Carol 2016). Although he traveled extensively between New York, Chicago, Washington DC and various parts of Europe throughout his lifetime, he would eventually settle again in Harlem. He too tackled issues surrounding racism but did so more explicitly than Cullen through a militant approach that gave voice to Black Nationalist sentiments (Gates et al., 2017). His works made frequent use of free verse which allowed readers to see things through another perspective- namely that of disenfranchised African Americans.
Cullen and McKay both shared similar backgrounds yet their views on race differed significantly resulting them being classified as belonging to different schools or movements within this era. Despite this, they both paved important pathways for other writers while tackling key issues affecting people at home leaving behind powerful legacies that have resonated deeply over time.
