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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 8 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which techniques are evident in line 4, "To bend and barter at desire's call"?

2. Whose presence is implied in "To bend and barter at desire's call" (line 4)?

3. What does the expression "feet of clay" in line 15 refer to?

4. In line 16, what word does the speaker use to describe the feet of his own race?

5. What does the word "shod" in line 12 refer to?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does McKay convey the idea that these women are sex workers?

2. What is the poem's first image, and how does it set a tone for the rest of the poem?

3. What indications does the speaker give that he feels the sex workers' choices indicate something about all Black people in America?

4. What does the poem conclude is the cause of the women's choice to pursue sex work?

5. Where is Harlem and why is it significant to the meaning of this poem?

6. Describe the form of this poem.

7. How does the use of the word "prowling" contrast with the poem's previous descriptions of the women?

8. How does the second stanza set up a contrast between dark and light?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Choose another of McKay's poems and write an essay that compares and contrasts it with "Harlem Shadows," using biographical information about McKay to illuminate the similarities and differences between the two poems. (For the second poem, do not choose a McKay poem already discussed in class.) Your goal is not to analyze these poems but to demonstrate how the two poems reflect Claude McKay's era, his typical subject matter, and his style. Support your arguments with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from both poems, and be sure to cite all evidence--including outside sources--in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

How does Claude McKay use diction in "Harlem Shadows" to convey meaning to the reader? Consider the level of formality and connotations of his word choices as well as patterns in the way diction creates tone and reveals the speaker's perspective. Show how these elements of diction contribute to the reader's understanding of the poem's meaning. Use both quoted and paraphrased evidence to support your claims, making sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

What is the significance of McKay's use of the word "brown" to describe his race? How does this separate the racial idea of "Blackness" from the way dark is being used in the poem? How does using the color white to refer to snow but never using the word "black" to refer to any of the dark things in the poem function in the same way? Write an essay in which you show how McKay is able to use traditional literary symbolism of dark and light/black and white without implying that Blackness in racial terms is associated with any of the negative qualities attributed to darkness or the color black in literature. Support your observations with both quoted and paraphrased evidence drawn from throughout the poem, and be sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.

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