The Harlem Renaissance and Claude McKay
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Lesson details
Key learning points
- In this lesson, we will continue our exploration of 'If We Must Die'. We are going to travel to 1920s and 1930s America to learn about the Harlem Renaissance. We will also find out about some of the regrettable context which inspired the poet Claude McKay.
Content guidance
- Contains depictions of discriminatory behaviour.
Supervision
Adult supervision suggested.
Licence
This content is made available by Oak National Academy Limited and its partners and licensed under Oak’s terms & conditions (Collection 1), except where otherwise stated.
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8 Questions
Q1.
Who wrote the poem 'If We Must Die'?
Ms Turner
Oak Academy
William Shakespeare
Q2.
How do we first approach a poem?
We analyse the poem
We try to understand every single word
We write about the poem
Q3.
When we first look at the sounds and language of a poem, what is it good to think about?
What it makes people say
Whether it is a good poem
Whether it rhymes
Q4.
What does it mean to do something nobly?
You do something dangerously
You do something in a posh way
You do something powerfully
Q5.
Which of the two groups in the poem are described as behaving nobly?
The 'they' group
Q6.
Which of these words is used to describe the 'we' group in the poem?
Dogs
Fighters
Monsters
Q7.
Which of these words is used to describe the 'they' group in the poem?
Hogs
Men
Tryants
Q8.
What have we learnt 'If We Must Die' is about so far?
It is about being murderous cowards
It is about fighting between hogs and dogs
It is about people dying
8 Questions
Q1.
When and where was the Harlem Renaissance?
Europe, 1900s
Italy, 15th and 16th Century
UK, 2020s
Q2.
What was the Harlem Renaissance?
A rebirth of classical culture
A time of oppression and fear
Claude McKay's time of birth
Q3.
What does oppression mean?
The person or people who are doing the cruel and unfair things
The person or people who are suffering from being treated cruelly or unfairly
Treating people in a dignified and noble way
Q4.
Who was Claude McKay?
A musician and writer
A politician
A protestor
Q5.
What is racial oppression?
The treatment of a group of people cruelly because of their religion
The treatment of a group of people fairly because of the colour of their skin
The treatment of a group of people unfairly because of their gender
Q6.
What was the Red Summer?
A very hot summer in the 1920s
African-American servicemen returning from war
The Harlem Renaissance
Q7.
What did Claude McKay say about how his crew reacted to the poem?
They were aggressive
They were excited
They were nervous
Q8.
What did Frank Harris say about the poem 'If We Must Die'?
It was 'authentic fire and blood'
It was a 'superb poem'
It was about 'oppression'