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All I Wanna Say Literary Devices

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“If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself, then make that change.”- Michael Jackson. Inspiring words from the iconic “King of Pop” himself: Michael Joseph Jackson (also known as “MJ”). This singer, songwriter, and dancer was dubbed one of the most popular entertainers in the world, known for his mind-blowing performances as well as his acute lyrics. One of his greatest hit songs was the world known “They don’t care about us”. Released in June 1995 the song is one of the most controversial songs of Michael’s career. The anthem addresses the way people in power treat those with less power and resources. This can be summarized in the hook: “All I wanna say is that/They don’t really care about us”. In addition to the …show more content…

It is described as the “act of creating and describing characters in literature. Characterization includes both descriptions of a character’s physical attributes as well as the character’s personality” (Literary Devices, 2015). This can be translated as bringing the character to light, to bring out his or her characteristics in terms of personality and physique. In this piece, the composer is characterizing his people, the black people the oppressed. This is seen because he uses the pronouns “us” and “me” to refer to all the people suffering and point out that he has also been a victim. But, the “me” is also him saying that he is the voice of the persecuted. In the video, you can clearly see the anger and rage displayed in facial expression of both MJ and all his fellow inmates in the jail cell as well as the scenes in the cafeteria. The anger is also portrayed four times when Michael Jackson screams to what seems like a cry of pain and agony. All these bring out the pain MJ is trying to communicate to his audience for them to get a glimpse of what black people went through. According to Eaglestone, “one of the most heated debates of the last sixty (60) years was over ‘the author is dead’” (2009). This debate opposed: those who believed that what the author meant was what the text should be seen as (authorial intention); and those who believed that a text had no fixed meaning and the text’s understanding was based on the reader’s interpretation only …show more content…

I will admit that I see the song differently now. I understand how deep it truly is and the message of Michael Jackson seems clearer. I realize the methods he used to translate his rage and pain as the voice of the oppressed. I can also state that this song can be linked with the recent “Black Lives Matter” movement because the movement revolves around police brutality against black people in the USA since

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