Mr. Z

M. Carl Holman

The next poem I read, was "Mr. Z", by M. Carl Holman. The first things I noticed were that the poem is split into 4 stanzas, doesn't give the character a specific name, and has an ironic tone. I think the reason Mr. Z isn't given a name is in order to not reveal any thing about the character. The author wants the reader to be free of preconceptions while reading the poem. The reader is forced to figure out who Mr. Z is through text alone, with little help from the title. It seems to me that Mr. Z is a man who rejected his African American heritage. I came to this conclusion through multiple lines throughout the poem. The poem reads "His palate shrank from cornbread, yams and collars" (Holman). This shows that he is going away from the traditionally thought of African American stapes, and moving on to a more Caucasian cuisine. The irony comes into play with the last line. Holman writes "One of the most distinguished members of his race" (Holman). Him being called the greatest member of his race is highly ironic, because he doesn't live his race, and it's culture, instead, he shunned it, moving away from it, choosing instead a more white way of acting.