A Long Way Gone

music remains a source of joy for him. Music acts as a way for Ishmael to disconnect

In the memoir A Long Way Gone, author Ishmael Beah describes his survival journey as a lost child in his country, because of the civil war in Sierra Leone, then becoming a child soldier facing war daily, afterward the process that Beah went through during rehabilitation and finally in fear escaping the civil war. Ishmael Beah emotional journey has three stages of development in which Beah utilized music. In the first stage, Beah uses music as a survival mechanism to keep sane and safe. In the second stage, begins when he loses his brother and friends, Beah reaches the lowest point with the loss of his entire family again, some friends, music, and being forced to join the war. In the final stage, is the process of rehabilitation where Beah connects with music once again. Ishmael Beah exposure to music at a young age stayed with him throughout his life. (Beah, 2007, p. 5-218)

“Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything. -Plato” Music is as a light of hope for Ishmael Beah, when he is placed in these life or death situations. Music plays a big role in most of everyone’s lives. Music can cheer you up, it can get you excited, it can calm you down, and in Beah’s eyes it can save your life. I use music in my everyday life to to cope with my stress, and play music that corresponds with my mood. In some parts of our world, music is their culture. As Santana’s song says, let the music set you free. In the book A Long Way Gone, Beah’s music plays a big role in his survival and displays his innocence when he was still a kid.

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, by Ishmael Beah has made real to me, the horrors of war and the way it can change everything in an instant, and even cause good people to commit terrible acts to survive. I keep up with world news and listen to reports on war, but reading Beah’s memoir has brought emotion to cold facts, and intimacy to the statistics of news reported death tolls. At the age of twelve, Ishmael and his friends are excitedly walking sixteen miles to the city to rap in a friend’s talent show, when their lives are suddenly changed forever.

In general I think never giving up is quote that consistently came to my mind while reading A Long Way Gone. Throughout the story Ishmael was a strong young man that never gave up. Even after his village had been attacked with his family in it, he still believed that he could find shelter and that his family could still be living. Even after he knew his family died he still had the bravery to go on with his journey to safety. S a solider he killed soldiers to get revenge and to save himself and others. Later on the lieutenant assigned Ishamel and a few others to a center where they could go back to school. They didn’t know where they were going or how life without being a solider would be. I thought this quote was significant because though

“When I was a child, my grandmother told me that the sky speaks to those who look and listen to it. She said, ‘in the sky there are always answers and explanations for everything: every pain, every suffering, joy, and confusion.’ that night I wanted the sky to talk to me.” throughout my endearing reading of A Long Way Gone I found myself fascinated with the African culture. The way African writers talk of the all knowing sky and nature's wisdom makes my mind dance with curiosity and creates the ability to pertain an existential view of the world around me.

When man dwells within the musical element, he lives in a reflection of his spiritual home. In this shadow image of the spiritual, the human soul finds its highest exaltation, the most intimate connection with the primeval element of man. This is why even the most humble soul is so deeply affected by music. The most humble soul feels in music an echo of what it has experienced in Devachan. The soul feels at home there. Each time he listens to music man senses, “Yes, I am from another

Music can help people with many different things. Including being very therapeutic, lifting the moods of people, and reducing pain a lot. Music does not have negative side effects. Therefore, making it a very safe and cost efficient treatment. Many different research projects have been conducted over the years. One such project was done in The United Kingdom and Finland on how emotions correlate with listening to sad music. It has been found that sad music brings about positive feelings. But for some sad music affects them negatively. Amazingly

Music is composed of sounds intertwined with melody and rhythm that can have powerful effects on a person. It can help people focus on tasks or calm the mind. Research has shown that music has beneficial effects on the mind, body, and health of a person. A journal article by Rastogi, Solanki, and Zafar (2013) refers, on the contrary, to:

Some people think that music can positively influence the listener while others disagree and argue that it has a negative impact. Mark Edmundson, the author of “Can Music Save Your Life?,” asserts through his own experience and the research of others that music solely “preserves” the listener’s life as a “balm—cortisone spread” (paragraph 25). His use of a well-known medical supplement makes it more relatable and believable to the reader. The authors of “Feeling the Beat” support Edmundson by stating that they observed an increased sense of confidence in oneself and one’s beliefs in the people they interviewed(Iwamoto, Creswell, & Caldwell 346). Their main support is the quote from one of their interviewee’s who said, “We can identify what they are talking about” (Iwamoto, Creswell, & Caldwell 343). This not only explains why students listen to certain types of music, but also why it can have such an impact on them. Derek Iwamoto, John Creswell, and Leon Caldwell declare their statement that positive influence of music by stating that the majority of the students they observed used their music as a way to

In recent years, scientists have proven neurological and psychological benefits of music. Some may view music as just a way to pass time, but it has the capability to change the world.

Thesis: Music is a unique form of sound powerful enough to manipulate mood, feelings, and cognition.

Music has a major importance on the way we think and act. It affects and almost controls chemicals in the brain that control and affect our emotions. It affects chemicals such as melatonin, oxytocin, serotonin, etc. Melatonin may increase the production of

As the combination of different sounds travel through out ears, we tend to connect music with certain emotions or memories. For example, to feel that adrenaline rush we select a more upbeat tone in music. If you want a relaxed mood, you listen to something nice and calm with a relaxing melody. According to an article by Mental Health Center, students at Penn State did a study on music and emotions; they showed that people’s emotions have a more positive attitude after they listened to music. Music has a great

One of the greatest effects of music, is of its mental health effects. Not only with improving actual mental illness, but also with