The American classic, “This Land is Your Land”, is a timeless piece of art that resembles a patriotic statement in the eyes of several Americans. The writer himself, Woody Guthrie, created this folk song reflecting the importance of beauty in America and his vexation towards those who are unwilling to share it. This tune is also known as an alternative tune and Marxist response Irving Berlin’s well known National Anthem, “God Bless America”. His interpretation and skill in music led many Americans to During the 1920s, Woody Guthrie was raised in a culture full of blues, fiddle songs, and church hymns in Oklahoma. He left his hometown for the road when his mother was diagnosed with a mental disorder. Throughout his journey within America,
In other words, the speaker is celebratory over each American carrying out their tasks and fulfilling their responsibilities; which allows for America to be established as a strong and productive country. In contrast, “Let America Be America Again,” has a bitter and angry tone which over time changes into hope. To explain, the speaker is upset over the lack of freedom and opportunity in the country everyone dreamed about, yet he is still hopeful that America can reach its potential. In addition, the poem includes metaphors such as, “let it be that great strong land of love” (Hughes); which evokes unity and equality. Similarly, in “I Hear America Singing,” the speaker compares the people’s work to music due to their strong work ethic. One may infer that the singing of America means that the country
One of the most disturbing things in today’s culture is a loss of originality and nationality. People are no longer proud to be Americans and instead of pushing for new heights people follow in the footsteps of others. People today need heir sense of self back and need to start taking pride in what they do and where they’re from. In “One Song, America, Before I Go” by Walt Whitman and “I Too” by Langston Hughes, the speakers celebrated the concepts of individuality, originality, and nationality.
When songwriters begin to pen the lyrics of a song, I believe their ultimate goal is to transcend time in hopes of reaching listeners for generations to come. J.R. Cash, professionally known as Johnny Cash, wrote a song that did just that. “Ragged Old Flag” is a patriotic song that speaks to every generation. Written in 1974, “Ragged Old Flag” was meant to tell the story of our country. Johnny Cash recorded “Ragged Old Flag” live at the House of Cash. Cash wanted the song to be recorded live because it was raw, untouched, and unapologetically real. The basis of this analysis is to show how patriotism spans generations, but also why a song such as, “Ragged Old Flag” is an important part of patriotism in the United States of America.
In both Walt Whitman's "I hear America Singing" and Sherman Alexie's "Hymn," America is uniquely defined. In Walt Whitman's poem, he describes America as being a place packed with many citizens singing to their hearts content. Each of these people, he writes, possesses their own trade or hobby that fulfills them. By belting their own melody, they each express their own vision of "The American Dream." Whether it be the carpenter, or the mason, or the mechanic; each American citizen works hard individually to chase their own desires while simultaneously being apart of the massive group of dreamers who work together to all make America prosperous and beautiful. This is similar to how in a choir each vocal part has its own part that is great by itself, but when combined with other vocal parts magnificent since a gorgeous harmony is formed. In Whitman's idea, America is a place of dreamers who all march to the beat of their own drum to achieve anything in the realm of possibility. This collective effort helps to build America into a place that is innovative and promising.
In the essay “Of thee they sing with feeling”, Garrison Keillor details his opinion on the United States’ National Anthem and the unity it brings Americans when they join together in song. After reading his essay, a greater appreciation for the indescribable feeling it gives those who sing it was more thoroughly developed. Although our society is constantly changing, the National Anthem is a timeless patriotic piece that will be cherished by many generations to come.
The United States has a storied musical history, shaped by a massively diverse population and geography. “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “Dixie’s Land” are two of the most important songs to American popular music history, and shaped the outcome of the Civil War and much of the past two centuries. Historically they represent entirely opposite ideals, but they interact immensely over the course of American history. Their complicated evolving relationships with society and each other represent the changing politics and culture of the United States from the Civil War to present day.
One of the most iconic patriotic songs, “America The Beautiful” was originally written by Katherine Lee Bates, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970 (Songwriters Hall of Fame) as a result of her success. The melody, created separately, was produced by choirmaster and organist Samuel A. Ward. The melody was originally developed for one of his works called “Materna”. The poem by Bates and the music by Ward was combined and published in 1910 as the final product, “America the Beautiful”. This recording of “America the Beautiful” is performed by the United States Navy and Sea Chanters chorus, which adds to its patriotic significance.
Woody Guthrie was the most famous folk singer in the 1930’s. Guthrie was born in Oklahoma and moved to Texas when he was 18. Guthrie was in the hardest hit area when Black Sunday came around. His songs written near or during the Great Depression were supposed to put a hand on the country’s shoulder and say that we can get through this. The Story of Oklahoma states that “much of Woody Guthrie’s life was tragic, but he managed to make it into a joyful song” (Baird 340).
In the poems "I, Too, Sing America" by Langston Hughes, and "I Hear America Singing" deriving from Walt Whitman's collection of "Leaves of Grass", both have idealistic views. In Whitman's piece of writing, it talks about how America is exceptional. Also, how wonderful all of the laborers in America are. They all sing and love their jobs, and when needed, come together to form the whole society of America. But he can see that one day, he will no longer have to hide. Rather, his owner and his guests will see how strong and beautiful he truly is. Clearly, in both of the poems, the authors see the idealism in America.
Woody Guthrie was an American singer-songwriter and musician who is today known as a huge part of traditional Americana music. Huge musicians in their own right, such as Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, John Mellenkamp, Pete Seeger, and many more have acknowledged Guthrie as a major influence in their creative song writing process. Many of his songs are based on his experience during the Great Depression as Guthrie travelled with displaced farmers from the Dust Bowl of Oklahoma searching for a better life in California.
Woody Guthrie was the most famous singers in the USA in the 1900s. His most famous song is This Land is Your Land. He sang this song all across America to encourage hundreds of poor people. Also, his quotes say that he hates songs that make people feel bad. The quotes and song are similar and different.
As The Star Spangled Banner is heard through the speakers of the football stadium, pride fills the hearts of all the Americans while they stand tall. The sole purpose that the song was written was to get America through a time of war and to instill a sense of strength and pride. The songs main focus is on the star spangled banner or the American flag. When people think of America they picture the red, white, and blue flag with the fifty stars. The American flag gives America something that represents them and that is why they wave the flag around proudly when given the chance. That very same pride that fellow Americans get when waving the flag is the same pride that Francis Scott Key felt as he seen the flag flying over Fort Henry. These following lines of The Star Spangled Banner is proof that Americans should be proud to live in America, “What so proudly we hail'd at the twilight's last
“let America Be America Again” has a gloomy, heavy, sulky view of America. It questions as to whether America is all it’s cracked up to be, a place where anyone can be whatever and do whatever. Whereas “I Hear America Singing” has a rose-colored, on cloud nine, view that paints America as a utopia. It makes everyone look like little gears that, no matter what, keep on turning to make things run as smoothly as possible. Both of these selections are biased , one positive and one negative, but they both make the reader paint an image of the America that the selection points out. To me America is a dream and ideal place to live, they don’t restrict one’s thoughts or feelings. If they did then Hughes and Whitman wouldn’t have been able to release these two pieces of work and, in turn, there would be a lot less emotion in the work today, and work without emotion is work that doesn’t belong in
The artifact that expresses my view of America is the song, “God Bless the USA” written and sung by Lee Greenwood. Although written in the 1980s, this song rose to popularity after the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center. “God Bless the USA” is a motivating song that I believe reassured the American people and gave them hope after such a traumatic incident.
“ Take it easy but take it.” This is a quote by Woody Guthrie. His inspirational words and songs make a huge impact on our world today. Woody Guthrie wrote lots of songs such as, “This Land is Your Land”, and so much more. His songs and words build many people up, and make people feel good about themselves. I admire his inspirational words and songs in so many ways. His songs and words are alike and different in many ways.