Between the World and Me

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of racism, graphic violence, and death.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. Wright’s poem creates a visceral transformation where the speaker literally becomes the lynching victim. How does this technique affect your reading experience, and what emotions did it evoke in you as you progressed through the poem?

2. “Between the World and Me” was written in 1935 but gained renewed attention when Ta-Nehisi Coates used the title for his 2015 book. If you’ve read Coates’s Between the World and Me, how does his exploration of Black vulnerability in America compare to Wright’s poetic treatment? If not, how do you think the poem’s themes remain relevant today?

3. The poem uses stark, brutal imagery rather than euphemism to describe the lynching scene. What was your initial reaction to Wright’s unflinching approach? How effective do you find this literary choice compared to more veiled descriptions of violence in other works you’ve read?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. The speaker undergoes a profound transformation through empathy when he “becomes” the victim.