One of the themes of "Incident" is the power of language. And no, we're not talking about the power of Hamlet, or the power of the Gettysburg address (though both are stuffed with super-powerful words). We're talking about the power of a single word. And as you know from reading the poem, that word is "n*****." It's a word with a long, complicated, and frankly terrifying history, and it's always been a form of hate speech. "Incident" dramatizes the power of this one short word as it tells the speaker's tale. There are few words in the English language with such a loaded history of pain, prejudice, hate, and enslavement. "Incident" amazingly captures all this history in just 12 short lines.
Questions About Language and Communication
- Do you think that the Baltimorean realizes the power of the word "n*****"? Does the poem give you any clues that he does or doesn't? What are they?
- Do you think that this is the first time that the speaker has encountered the word "n*****"? Why do you think so?
- Have times changed since Cullen first published the poem in 1925? Is the word "n*****" as powerfully offensive today as it was almost 100 years ago? Why do you think so?
- Aside from the Baltimorean's comment, how does the speaker's word choice in the poem drive home the power of language? What words stand out to you and why?
Chew on This
Zip it. We should never use the word "n*****" in speech—it's too offensive even to refer to in the context of the poem.
It's important to use the word "n*****" when discussing the poem; "Incident" is all about the power of the actual word. By discussing it openly, we're able to better appreciate its harmful power and so avoid it in future.