If we must die—let it not be like hogs
Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot,
While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,
Making their mock at our accursed lot.
If we must die—oh, let us nobly die,
So that our precious blood may not be shed
In vain; then even the monsters we defy
Shall be constrained to honor us though dead!
Oh, kinsmen! We must meet the common foe;
Though far outnumbered, let us still be brave,
And for their thousand blows deal one death-blow!
What though before us lies the open grave?
Like men we’ll face the murderous, cowardly pack,
Pressed to the wall, dying, but—fighting back!
Source: The first printing of Claude McKay’s poem “If We Must Die,” in The Liberator 2, no. 7 (July 1919): p. 21.
Discussion Questions
- How does the historical context of the time when Claude McKay wrote this poem inform your understanding of it?
- How did McKay want Black Americans to respond to their treatment and status in American society? What do you believe he meant by the phrase, “then even the monsters we defy/Shall be constrained to honor us though dead!”
- McKay made no mention of race in the poem. Do you believe that strengthens or weakens its message? Explain using specific examples from the poem.