The 1970s were a rough year for African-Americans, still fighting for social and political rights in the United States. Consequently, women still did not receive equal rights. However, in 1972, “Congress approved the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) to the Constitution, which reads: ‘Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex’ (History.com Staff).” Out of the thirty-eight necessary states only twenty-two ratified it right away, it was relieving for the moment because the feminist advocates had been trying to be ratified since 1923. The First African-American woman elected into Congress was Shirley Chisholm. This moment opened doors for African-American women that they thought would never have a chance. Nevertheless, the poem Ego Tripping written by Nikki Giovanni dated back to 1972 where she expresses her power throughout the poem with the support of feminist statements. Giovanni reminds the audience of historical moments that lead up to the current conditions of the United States. Ego Tripping (there may be a reason why) was published with a bundle of poetry which is entitled My House, the book of poems had a common underlying idea that Giovanni is free to do what she pleases and live by her own set of rules (Masterpieces of American Literature Ed. Steven G. Kellman.)
Frank Ocean once said, “When you 're happy, you enjoy the music. But when you 're sad, you understand the lyrics.” Why does one have to be sad to “understand the lyrics”? Evaluating a song and being given the ability to relate enhances one’s respect for the composer. For example, when one first listens to “Danny’s Song” by Kenny Loggins, they probably believe the song is about love, however, once a person analyzes the lyrics the realize that the song is actually a story of a couple who are having a baby boy. Their story shows how in times of financial problems, family and love stands strong. Kenny Loggins wrote this song as a gift to his brother, Danny.
Can any short story contain enough stylistic narrative to remain unique and memorable? A prominent example of a short story encompassing memorability and a deeper underlying story is evident in lyrics of multiple pieces of music. One of these pieces of short music is a popular piece of music written by the band Tally Hall. The song in question is dubbed “Hidden in the Sand”. Less than two minutes long, every word needed to be taken into account when constructing the lyrics. This is made obvious in the sense that the whole song is comprised of 6 sentences. Processes required to maintain a unique style, with the constraints a short song bear, requires the requires creative use of diction, imagery, details, language, and syntax. Through the use of stylistic elements such as imagery, syntax, and details, Joe Hawley reveals a narrative in a perspective that details a romantic betrayal, and how, later shown in the video of this song, this effects the narrator’s judgment of people.
Ludacris, a famous male singer released a song featuring Mary J. Blige in 2007 called “Runaway Love.” This song speaks for itself and Ludacris does an excellent job of portraying his message about various struggles that some people are faced with in life. Runaway Love reperents the struggle of life through hip-hop and rap music. The song portrays a story of little girls who are for instance “stuck up in a world of their own.” The people around them strictly don’t care about them, which leads them having to own up and care for themselves. These girls are at the ages from 9 to 11 and at a young age their goal in life is to run away from their home. In this song, Ludacris try to bring a message to the listeners by trying to get people to realize the struggle that children have to face. Adults aren 't the only people that go through hard times and struggles, children do as well. Though people believed adults are the only people to have problems, children just have problems in their own different ways.
The poem, At Mornington was written by Australian poet, Gwen Harwood. It was published in 1975 under her own name. At Mornington is about a woman reminiscing about her past when she is with her friend. There are many themes explored in this poem including memory, death and time passing.
‘For What It’s Worth’ by Buffalo Springfield has a logical message because it is referring to the Sunset Strip Riots that took place in Hollywood during the 1960’s. People protested when they lost their civil rights due to a curfew law that was put into place. The song says, “Stop, children, what’s that sound. Everybody look- what’s going down?” Community members were angry at the young people going to clubs at night because they were “loud” and “disruptive”. The curfew law was put into place after the complaints and the youth became outraged. They believed their civil right were being taken away. There were riots along the sunset strip, where all these clubs were located, to protest the law. Police were at these riots and many people were handcuffed and hauled off to jail. They are referring to children because these protests were from the younger generation. Even though the overall message is logical, the support within this song is not as strong. ‘For What It’s Worth’ is often mistaken as an anti-war song since it was released during the Vietnam War era. When most people hear this song that is what they think of. The song can be heard in several war related movies. Some even believe it is about the Kent State Shootings although the song was released years before that event occurred. Even though there is not strong evidence to back up this song's true meaning, it
How would you feel if someone could control what you were thinking? In “The Feed” written by M.T Anderson, everyone living in the community had a feed in their brain that was controlled by one large organization. Violet, the main character, suffers through a malfunction in her feed that changes the way she sees her society. Most people’s opinions can be changed when they have experienced the benefits and the disadvantages of something. Since Violet is aware of how life is with and without the feed, she becomes hesitant to believing that her community is being run efficiently. She realizes how her feed affects everything she does and how without it, she would be incapable. Based on her experiences, thoughts, and actions, I can infer that Violet
The poem A Step Away From Them by Frank O’Hara has five stanzas written in a free verse format with no distinguishable rhyme scheme or meter. The poem uses the following asymmetrical line structure “14-10-9-13-3” while using poetic devices such as enjambment, imagery, and allusion to create each stanza.
Have you ever faced a life-changing experience that impacted you, your family, or your country? Melba Pattillo Beals, Jackie Robinson, and Feng Ru faced life-changing experiences and made decisions that impacted their lives, their family’s lives, and their countries’ lives. In the story Warriors Don’t Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals, Melba integrated an all white school so blacks can get an equal education as whites. In the story I Never Had It Made by Jackie Robinson, Jackie was the first African American to play in the Major Leagues. Finally, in the story “Father of Chinese Aviation” by Rebecca Maksel, Feng Ru, became the first Chinese aviator to build planes of his own design. Not only did these three individuals change their countries, but by doing something life-changing, they impacted their own lives.
To begin, the lyrical tone is introspective. The lyrics in themselves motivate the listeners to reflect back on how they have been handling more major issues in their lives. “It 's time that I realize that there are some with no home, not a nickel to loan. Could it be really me, pretending that they 're not alone?” (stanza 5, lines 2-4); in these lines, Michael Jackson is advising others to review their past experiences, to see if they have been overlooking those in need. He is also stating that he is also guilty of ignoring underprivileged people. ANOTHER SONG LINE? The musical tone is ashamed; Michael Jackson is ashamed that he has not made an impact on the lives of needy people. For example, he begins with the lines “I’m gonna make a change, for once in my life” (stanza 1, lines 1-2). This implies that he feels he has not made a change before; he wants to make a difference for the first time. Especially when he sings “for once in my life”, his singing becomes close to a whisper and it is long and drawn out, which leads listeners to believe that the singer is ashamed. He then goes into the lines “It’s gonna feel real good, gonna make a difference, gonna make it right” (stanza 1, lines 3-4), which means that he wants to make up for all the times he has disregarded those who may be suffering. He feels almost guilty, so it will feel good to get rid of that burden and to
The song “Five Years” is a dramatic story told by Bowie. The song tells us about earth beginning to die, and in five years time, it will be gone. The song goes on to then tell us about all the things that happen in the world when the news is broken to them by the newsman on the tv. The stylistic choices used by speakers and songwriters help give the song/poem depth, purpose and add emotion. David Bowie uses stylistic choices in the song “Five Years” to add meaning to the song and add to the overall structure by telling a story of earth dying and reactions of people after hearing the tragic news. He uses mood, tone, imagery, and rhyme scheme to convey a story to entertain, create emotion, and evoke questions within the listener.
Conflict is a big theme and many poems and texts have been written on this topic, but two of the most well done and most expressive poems about this topics are “Out of the Blue” and “The Charge of the Light Brigade”. Even though the topic is the same the two authors, Simon Armitage and Alfred, Lord Tennyson, present the theme with different approaches, one about the innocent, one about the ones that chose to get involved In the conflict.
The poem “In a Library” was written by Emily Dickinson as an expression of her love of books, and the way they can transport her. Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830. Emily Dickinson was born and raised in Amherst, Massachusetts. She went to school, where she was an excellent student, until she was 18. She then dropped out and lived her life at home. Emily lived at home, with her sister, for many years and took care of her parents until their deaths. After both of her parents’ deaths Emily stayed home very often, and is thought by most scholars to have had depression and/or other mental illnesses. It was during this time she got most of her writing and poetry done.
How would you like it if you had to fit in? The poet Erin Hanson, who goes by E.H., wrote the poem “Welcome to Society”. The poem is summarized by the third and fourth lines, which state, “And please feel free to be yourself/ As long as it’s in the right way.” Hanson expresses the theme of social acceptance through his/her use of conflict, word choice, and idioms throughout the poem.