Quotation
Quote by Claude McKay
I feel that I would rather face a lynching stake in civilised America than try to make a speech before the most intellectual and critical audience in the world.
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Understanding this quote
The speaker says that addressing a highly intellectual and critical audience feels more frightening than facing a lynching stake in supposedly civilised America. The comparison uses an extreme danger to show how severe the pressure of public speaking seems. It presents the audience—not physical punishment—as the harder ordeal to face.
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- Source
- Marxists Internet Archive, transcribed from International Press Correspondence, January 5, 1923
- Format
- Official Statement
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