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

2. What ideas are associated with the snow in this poem?

3. In line 1, "footsteps of a lass" is an example of which technique?

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

5. Which two lines of each stanza create a kind of refrain in this poem?

Short Essay Questions

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

2. Describe the form of this poem.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Read Claude McKay's poem "On Broadway" (widely available online). In this poem, you will also see a speaker immersed in a New York environment, observing a nighttime scene. You will see the personification of desire as well as references to feet, the heart, and ceaseless motion. All of these elements are very like "Harlem Shadows"--but the intent of "On Broadway" is very different. Write an essay comparing and contrasting these two poems. Show how it is possible for two poems by the same author to have so many elements in common and yet convey very different ideas about life. Be sure to support your assertions with evidence from both poems and to cite your sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

In "Harlem Shadows," how does the personification in the first stanza create an aura of sympathy around the sex workers' situation? Does that sympathy continue throughout the poem? What feelings are attributed to the women? Are their voices ever heard? How is the choice to attribute feelings to them and not let them speak for themselves consistent with the purpose of the personification in the first stanza? How do other techniques, like antithesis, metonymy, synecdoche, diction, imagery, and symbolism work together with that personification to remove agency from the sex workers? How does this loss of agency support the poem's meaning? Write an essay in which you consider how McKay uses personification and other rhetorical devices to create a unified picture of the sex workers as more object than subject. Use both quoted and paraphrased evidence to support your claims, making sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

There is a long tradition of visual and literary artists using sex workers as symbols. In a patriarchal society where sex work is largely dominated by women and the arts have historically been dominated by men, this means a large number of male painters and writers trying to convey something about the world through the figure of the female sex worker. Is this inherently problematic? Is Claude McKay's use of female sex workers problematic in any way? Do some research into how sex workers have been portrayed in art and literature. Use this background information to develop your own opinion about the reasons these female figures have been used symbolically and the ethical implications of this use. Then, decide to what extent McKay's use of sex workers as symbols falls in line with traditional uses and whether you find his particular use of them to be ethical or unethical. Write an essay in which you take and defend a position on these issues, supporting your assertions with evidence drawn from "Harlem Shadows" and from your background research. Be sure to cite your evidence in MLA format.

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