The Harlem Dancer Flashcards
by Claude McKay — tap or click to flip
Flashcard Review
Flashcards: The Harlem Dancer
When and where was "The Harlem Dancer" first published?
In 1917 in The Seven Arts magazine, under the pseudonym Eli Edwards.
What pseudonym did McKay use for his early American publications?
Eli Edwards.
What is the setting of "The Harlem Dancer"?
A Harlem cabaret or nightclub where a woman sings and dances for a rowdy audience.
What poetic form does "The Harlem Dancer" use?
A Shakespearean sonnet: 14 lines, three quatrains and a couplet, ABAB CDCD EFEF GG rhyme scheme.
What simile describes the dancer's voice?
"Her voice was like the sound of blended flutes / Blown by black players upon a picnic day."
What does the "tropic palm" metaphor suggest?
It connects the dancer to tropical (Caribbean/African) roots and suggests that hardship has enhanced her beauty and resilience.
What is the volta (turn) in this sonnet?
The closing couplet, where the speaker reveals that despite her smile, the dancer's true self "was not in that strange place."
What contrast does the poem establish?
The contrast between the audience's objectifying gaze ("devoured her shape") and the speaker's empathetic perception of the dancer's inner dignity.
What is the central theme of "The Harlem Dancer"?
The preservation of inner identity and dignity despite external objectification and exploitation.
How does the poem explore the theme of the "double self"?
The dancer maintains a public performance self (the "falsely-smiling face") while her true self withdraws from the degrading scene, suggesting a split between outward appearance and inner reality.
What does the poem suggest about the male gaze?
The audience's "eager, passionate gaze" reduces the dancer to a body, while the speaker's deeper perception reveals the limitations and dehumanization of that objectifying gaze.
What does "swarthy" mean?
Dark-complexioned; having a dark skin tone.
What does "luxuriant" mean in "Luxuriant fell"?
Growing abundantly; lush and rich — describing the dancer's thick, shiny curls.
What does "gauze" refer to in the poem?
A thin, translucent fabric — the light, revealing costume the dancer wears during her performance.
What is the significance of "falsely-smiling face"?
It reveals that the dancer's smile is a performance mask — she appears happy for the audience but is emotionally absent from the scene.
What does "I knew her self was not in that strange place" mean?
The speaker recognizes that the dancer's inner identity — her true self — has withdrawn from the cabaret setting. Her body performs, but her spirit is elsewhere.
What does "Devoured her shape with eager, passionate gaze" convey?
The verb "devoured" suggests the audience consumes the dancer visually with predatory hunger, reducing her to an object of physical appetite.
Who makes up the audience in the poem?
"Applauding youths," "young prostitutes," and "wine-flushed, bold-eyed boys, and even the girls" — a rowdy, mixed crowd in a Harlem cabaret.
How is "The Harlem Dancer" a precursor to the Harlem Renaissance?
Published in 1917, it established themes central to the movement: celebration of Black beauty, tension between public performance and private identity, and the complex dynamics of Harlem cultural life.
What collection was "The Harlem Dancer" later included in?
Harlem Shadows (1922), considered the first major poetry collection of the Harlem Renaissance.
How does the speaker differ from the rest of the audience?
While others objectify the dancer's body, the speaker looks beyond the physical to perceive her inner emotional state and recognize her full humanity.