Over the course of American history, there a have been several significant events that have impacted poetry, which serve to be the roots of the majority of songs. These poetry roots have further developed the diction and repetition within each song. “The Battle Cry of Freedom,” a historic piece, employs repetition and diction to emphasize its patriotic message. However, as time continues, the merit of the piece, written by George Frederick Root in 1862, has been degraded and no longer holds the same significance in people's hearts as it used too. In order to better understand why, one must consider the meaning of the poem, what its significance was when written and what it means today. After a series of disagreements over slavery, South Carolina finally seceded on December, 20th of 1860. Therefore, leading to war between the north and the south. As this war progressed, it would be declared the war fighting for freedom of all people, including slaves in 1863. Even though the “Battle Cry of Freedom” was written a year before the declaration over freeing slaves was made, it was written to support the union and abolitionist. Root makes a point of supporting the North by including: “Down with the traitor, Up with the star; While we rally around the flag, boys...” (Lines 8-10). In fact, the diction of “Up with the star” is a reference to the Union flag; due to the number of stars the union flag had on compared to the confederate flag. Moreover, each time the Union would win, they would lower the confederate flag and raise theirs in pride. In addition, Root uses repetition of “Should the battle-cry of Freedom” to help create rhythm. This is a key element that turns a poem into a song because it now has the base line that people can build allowing people to sing to the tune. The repetition of that phrase also emphasizes the the soldiers will to fight for freedom time and time again because freedom is the foundation of American beliefs. The foundation of American tie into the patriotic theme, which ultimately leads to the significance at the time. As a result of a depleting union army, President Abraham Lincoln issued a call for 300,000 volunteer soldiers (Civil War Music). Throughout history, American have always
Over fifty thousand books on the Civil War have been published, and the task for a writer who attempts a narrative of the period would seem to be overwhelming, but James M. McPherson managed to create one of the best ever. In 1988, he published his Pulitzer-winning book, Battle Cry of Freedom, and ten years later received the Lincoln Prize for another book, For Cause and Comrades. He has published around 23 scholarly books and unlike many historians, has a reputation of trying to make history accessible to the public. McPherson became the president of the American Historical Association in 2003, and is now a member of the editorial board of Encyclopedia Britannica. McPherson has helped millions of Americans better understand the meaning and legacy of the American Civil War. He does so by establishing the highest standards for scholarship and public education about the Civil War and helps to protect the nation’s battlefields. (nytimes.com)
In the Voices of Freedom, the passage explains the idea of American imperialism during the 1890s. It was written by a Filipino revolutionary and politician Emilio Aguinaldo. He was writing about the how the United States are taking over countries and limit their freedoms. Emilio's document was specifically describing the United States' occupation of the Philippines after the Spanish American War. The Question is that "Why does Aguinaldo think that the United States is betraying its own values?". Emilio thinks that the U.S is betraying its own value because they follow the practice of imperialism.
Its audiences are both men and women who come to the taverns to drink and sing after their long day on the field or in a factory. The song has persuaded the audiences in which men are willing to join the army to fight for the independence, and women are supporting their men to offer his strength to protect the country. If I were a colonial man who sitting and listening to this song, I would get inspired from hearing the song and join the army because I am a man full of pride for myself. Furthermore, a man lives on with his honor; the honor he gains from fighting for his
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.
Many people hail “The Star Spangled Banner” as the greatest piece of American music. The audiences of America’s national anthem seem, instinctively, eager to express their respect by embracing the notion to remove their hats and stand up. However, not many people ponder over the question of what “The Star Spangled Banner” truly means. What does it mean? Why does it deserve so much reverence and honor? What exceptional difference allows it to prevail over the masterpieces of prominent composers like Mozart and Beethoven? The answer is fairly simple. “The Star Spangled Banner” symbolizes America’s perseverance, its set of moral laws and ethics, and its history that constitutes what America truly means.
Protest poems and songs are, and have been throughout history, an effective medium of expressing their composer’s concerns or protests to a wide audience. The main themes behind each of these creative media are influenced heavily by the context in which they were created and focus on the composer’s opinions about controversial issues of that time. Poet Bruce Dawe, through his poem ‘homecoming’ and singer-songwriter Barry Maguire, through his song ‘Eve of destruction’ were able to explore and express their similar concerns about the harsh and dehumanising aspects of war and the effects on society, with Maguire focussing on the ignorance of society toward the detrimental effects of war and Dawe reflecting on emotional trauma experienced by those who lost love ones to the brutality of war.
Collections two and three consist of the themes of freedom and the bond between people. I learned that freedom and our bonds are what make us human. This is what connects everyone. Most people have relationships all around them. However, everyone does not have freedom. Everyone has a desire for relationships and a sense of freedom, which is what connects us all.
Bonnie Blue.1861). This is done to rally other southern states to the Confederacy. Syntax or the word order was chronological order, as after South Carolina “Then came Alabama, Who took her by the hand. Next quickly Mississippi, Georgia and Florida.” (Macarthy, Harry. Bonnie Blue.1861). Syntax shows what states were the bravest to be the first to leap and join the Confederacy. Figurative language is used to glorify the Confederacy and their cause in the song. Macarthy said that “We are a band of brothers And native to the soil, Fighting for the property We gained by honest toil.” (Macarthy, Harry. Bonnie Blue.1861). The meaning of the lyrics on the surface say that they gained their property through their own labor and that the Union is trying to end their way of life, however, their property was made by slaves and slaves are their property, so they’re not all that they are said to be. An image is created easy by the song of Confederates “rally[ing] round the Bonnie Blue Flag That bears a single star.” (Macarthy, Harry. Bonnie Blue.1861). Lastly, there is no permanent structure to the song. “We are a band of brothers And native to
In the song “Glory” sung by John Legend and Common is a powerful song inspired by the Civil Rights Movement. The theme of this song is that resistance enacts change. There are several literary devices that convey the importance and power of peaceful protest such as allusion, symbolism, and metaphors. These three literary devices help to illustrate the struggle, dedication, and triumphs of those involved in peaceful protest of the civil rights movement.
Both the Union army and the Confederate army had different songs that their soldiers would sing or that would be played by musicians. Some popular songs in the Union army included “Battle Cry of Freedom,” “May God Save the Union,” and “John Brown’s Body” (later known as “The Battle Hymn of the Republic”). Some popular songs of the Confederate army included “Dixie,” “God Save the South,” “God Will Defend the Right,” “The Rebel Soldier,” “Maryland, My Maryland,” and
The winner for the 1989 Pulitzer Prize for his book Battle Cry of Freedom, James M. McPherson, is a great american civil war historian. Born in Valley City, North Dakota on October 11, 1936 McPherson attended St. Peter High School. After graduation he attended Gustavus Adolphus College and in 1958 earned his bachelor’s degree with Magnum Cum Laude. He later attended John Hopkins University and earned his Ph.D. in 1963 and is now currently working as Professor Emeritus at Princeton University. McPherson is most well known for his work Battle Cry of Freedom, but he has wrote a number of other well known books including Tried By War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief. In 2009 James was a co-winner for the Lincoln Prize for this same book, and elected as a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
The poet then presents a scene of patriotic relevance as he describes a scene of a regiment marching into battle with their “flag” and “Eagle with crest of red and gold” (17-18). When people think of flags, they think of patriotism and representing their country. Eagles also symbolize freedom but as readers can witness in the work, the poet makes it seem as if these men were created not to enjoy the gift of life for one moment by him saying “These men were born to drill and die” (19). This comes across to the reader as almost inhumane. Then by illustrating an image of a field of thousands of dead corpses makes any reader wonder why people even go to war. The whole fourth stanza paints a picture of living human being going into a battle with most, if not any, making it out alive. Like stated before, the speaker in the poem builds a case for those people that opposed to war even though the title of the poem might
One of the most popular songs in the North and South was during the Civil War whih was “The Battle Cry of Freedom. It was written it 1862 by George Frederick Root, whom was an American composer during the era of the Civil War. The song possessed two versions in which it could be interpreted differently depending on the regions point of view. Both regions in the North and the South had lyrics that were modified when compared together. The Union and the Confederacy both demonstrates their mottos and their objectives.
Although "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" is today considered the preeminent Northern war song, Union soldiers were more likely to bestow that honor upon "The Battle Cry of Freedom." Willard A. and Porter W. Heaps, writing in The Singing Sixties, call "The Battle Cry of Freedom" `the type of rousing tune which appears seldom during a period of war and but once in a generation.". Composed in haste in a single day in response to President Abraham Lincoln's July 1862 call for 300,000 volunteers to fill the shrinking ranks of the Union Army, the song was first performed on July 24 and again on July 26 at a massive war rally. Composer-lyricist George F. Root recalled years later, "From there the song went into the army, and the testimony in regard to its use in the camp and on the march, and even on the field of battle, from soldiers and officers, up to the good President himself, made me thankful that if I could not shoulder a musket in defense of my country I could serve her in this way."
Use of free verse in this poem creates a lack of structure that appears to parallel the soldier’s own lack of structure and direction in his own life after he leaves the war. The poem begins with the image of a soldier's and his squadron raiding a farmhouse: