If We Must Die
By: Claude Mckay
If We Must Die
If we must die, let it not be like hogs,
Hunted and penned in a inglorious spot,
While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,
Making their mark at our accursed lot.
If we must die, O 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!
O kinsmen! We must meet the common foe!
Though far outnumbered let us show us 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!
Main Idea
The main idea of this poem is that if we die, die honorably and let us die working hard. It says if we die, not to die doing nothing or not trying. He's saying that if you are dying to not give up and if the circumstances get hard, to keep fighting back. So never give up and if times get rough keep fighting.
My Connection
My connection to this poem is soccer. As a team we had some tough losses, but we never gave up. If we lost, we went down fighting. We weren't the best team, but we surprised a lot of teams that we played. What matters is that we never gave up and we played as a team.
Won't Back Down song lyrics
Well, I won't back down
No I won't back down
You can stand me up at the gates of hell
But I won't back down
No I'll stand my ground
Won't be turned around
And I'll keep this world from draggin' me down
Gonna stand my ground
And I won't back down
(I won't back down)
Hey baby, there ain't no easy way out
(I won't back down)
Hey I will stand my ground
And I won't back down
Well I know what's right
I got just one life
In a world that keeps on pushin' me around
But I'll stand my ground
And I won't back down
(I won't back down)
Hey baby, there ain't no easy way out
(I won't back down)
Hey I will stand my ground
(I won't back down)
Hey baby, there ain't no easy way out
(I won't back down)
Hey I won't back down
(I won't back down)
Hey, baby, there ain't no easy way out
(I won't back down)
I will stand my ground
And I won't back down
No I won't back down
No I won't back down
You can stand me up at the gates of hell
But I won't back down
No I'll stand my ground
Won't be turned around
And I'll keep this world from draggin' me down
Gonna stand my ground
And I won't back down
(I won't back down)
Hey baby, there ain't no easy way out
(I won't back down)
Hey I will stand my ground
And I won't back down
Well I know what's right
I got just one life
In a world that keeps on pushin' me around
But I'll stand my ground
And I won't back down
(I won't back down)
Hey baby, there ain't no easy way out
(I won't back down)
Hey I will stand my ground
(I won't back down)
Hey baby, there ain't no easy way out
(I won't back down)
Hey I won't back down
(I won't back down)
Hey, baby, there ain't no easy way out
(I won't back down)
I will stand my ground
And I won't back down
No I won't back down
Connection Between Song and Poem
The connection between the song and poem is motivation. In the song he sings about never backing down. In the poem he is saying the same thing. I believe that this song is one of the best ways to describe this poem.