Literary Analysis : Strange Fruit

The version of the song “Strange Fruit,” by Cassandra Wilson is a piece of music that consists of 4 verses. I have broken these down into Verse A, Verse B. Verse A, and Verse A’. Cassandra’s voice is most certainly the melody of this version of Strange Fruit and is used in all 4 verses. The rhythm of this piece is a 4. The song opens in a high pitch “tinkling” piano, soft flute (that reminds me of the wind bowing) a soft distant sound of an electric guitar and the eerie background bass that has the feeling of darkness and fear. This drew an image of dark and chilling to me.

In Yusef Komunyakaa’s “Blackberries,” a youthful speaker seems to be living past the boundaries of city life and exhibits qualities of rural living. The poem tells of the speaker’s adventure of picking blackberries from a thicket and encountering the duality of urban society. Readers of “Blackberries” might at first be puzzled by the speaker’s youthful memory of picking berries, but a closer analysis of the poem allows readers to recognize that the speaker’s internal conflict originates from strict societal boundaries and the loss of his childhood innocence.

There comes a point in one’s life when they must recognize the hardships placed upon them, and instead of being ignorant of those hardships, they must confront them head-on. In “Marigolds”, a short story by Eugenia Collier, the main protagonist, Lizabeth, encounters various struggles that come with living in a poor town in rural Maryland during the Depression, allowing her to learn more about growing up and accepting reality with all its flaws. Lizabeth is a 14-year-old girl who feels a conflict between her inner child and her inner woman, as she is unable to do anything that satisfies both sides of her. She feels too old to be a child, yet too young to be a

In the short story “Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, there is a great deal of literary elements used to enhance the story. For example, imagery is used to draw the reader 's attention further into the story by having them see it happening in their head and allegory is used to pull the reader away from the story by referencing things that happened somewhere else. While these two literary elements are both used to magnify different parts of the story, as well as counterbalance each other, the literary device that this essay will be focused on is symbolism. While it appears in many parts of the story one of the most obvious uses of

Power and control plays a big role in the lives many. When power is used as a form of control, it leads to depression and misery in the relationship. This is proven through the themes and symbolism used in the stories Lesson before Dying, The fun they had, The strangers that came to town, and Dolls house through the median of three major unsuccessful relationship: racial tension between the African Americans and the caucasians in the novel Lesson before Dying, Doll’s House demonstrates a controlling relationship can be detrimental for both individuals and The Stranger That Came To Town along with The Fun They Had show that when an individual is suppressed by majority they become despondent.

The 1930’s was a decade of extremely hard times, following the stock market crash and an extreme depression. In spite of the tremendous hardships in America during this decade, it also became a time of great music that is still remembered today. Jazz music was highly popular in this time, and Billie Holiday was a famous jazz performer. She stood out from many other musicians because of her intense and passionate performances. Jazz arose from “unacceptable” segments of society, but quickly grew like wildfire. We often think of the 1930’s as the decade that jazz became civilized, and famous throughout popular culture through the work of pioneering artists like Billie Holiday. People did not own televisions or cable, so radio was their main source of entertainment, and music during this decade was both up beat and a source of relaxation. “Strange Fruit” defied musical category because it was considered too artsy to be folk, and too explicitly political to fit into jazz. This is why “Strange Fruit” became such a powerful phenomenon. Many other artists later took on this song, changing the genre but still portraying the same message. Nina Simone dramatized “Strange Fruit” in the context of the Civil Rights Movement. More important artists like Jeff Buckley, Rene Marie, Labor Camp Orchestra, and many others made their own rendition on the song, still leaving all of their audiences moved by the powerful imagery of the lyrics.

In the book Everything I Never Told You, there are many different elements and techniques used within the book. The technique that I want to go into more depth on is the use of symbolism. I specifically want to focus on the symbolism in regards to Lydia, Hannah, and Nath’s love of astronauts and space.

In past years, as well as, in the twenty-first century, African Americans are being oppressed and judged based on the color of their skin. In, A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines, this is the primary conflict that plagues Jefferson’s as well as Grant’s everyday life. By pleading guilty to a murder that he did not commit, Jefferson has to choose to die just as he is, a hog in the white’s eyes, or die a man. On the other hand, Grant, who is his teacher, is faced with being looked down upon by his community all because of his race and status. He is graced with the challenge of turning Jefferson into a man before his execution date. It is only a matter of time before they both realize that they cannot change the past and they have

Billie Holiday, an African American singer and songwriter from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania who has finally had enough of all the racism and inhumanity in her life. She has released a song on Monday of March, 1929, called "Strange Fruit", speaking of many African Americans Being accused of something wrong, then being hung from a tree, hence the reference "Strange Fruit." Lynching is an activity mostly carried out by a group of men to scare another group or minority by public execution without a legal trial. The execution can be done in many different ways, the most common was hanging. There were many different ways for people to be lynched.

Determination is a key part of life because it can get you through tough situations. It is easy to give up in hardships, but determination is so much more important. In NightJohn by Gary Paulsen, readers realize that though they may be in a tough situation, determination can get them through it and achieve your goals.

What is love? Is love the easy, effortless romance of a never-ending honeymoon? Or is it a constant struggle - a war between the extremes of irrevocable love and absolute loathing? Tim O'Brien's novel In the Lake of the Woods presents many types of relationships - whether familial, friendly, or romantic - in a perspective that allows the nature of love to be examined. Through the eyes of John Wade, the reader explores his relationships, particularly those with his father, his wife Kathy, and his fellow soldiers in Vietnam. Ultimately, the decision about the nature of love is left open for the reader to ponder; however, John Wade's story presents a strong case for the idea that love is a war rather than a peaceful getaway.

The photograph shows a twisted celebration taking place while the men were lynched as well as the extent of violence and racism in the South. This photograph shows what it was like in the South at the time and how out of control lynching had become. Abel Meeropol’s poem quickly became known as the “the first significant protest in words and music, the first unmuted cry against racism” (Margolick 92). After it was converted into a song by Billie Holiday, it became increasingly popular, as well as becoming Holiday’s top hit. “Strange Fruit” was the first song to blatantly speak out against racism with powerful imagery such as “black bodies hanging from the polar trees” and in turn the song “almost single-handedly changed the politics of American black culture and put the elements of protest and resistance back at the center of contemporary black musical culture” (Margolick 92).

Literary Analysis Essay The play “A Raisin In The Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry was written in 1959. The play explains and examines the experience of a black/African American family that tries to better their life with an insurance check paid to them because of the death of the father in the family. The play showcases lots of examples of different themes that are used but the one I chose was cultural identity in America. Cultural identity in America is often specified as the behaviors and beliefs, or characteristics of a person based on his or her ethnic or age group. Furthermore, the character that this is displayed in and through is Beneatha.

Chinua Achebe was a Nigerian novelist, poet, professor and critic. He is mainly known for his trilogy that investigates, using fiction, the history of Nigeria. The trilogy begins with Things Fall Apart, followed by No Longer at Ease and ended with Arrow of God. Furthermore, in this critically analytical essay, through a feminist perspective, a chapter of his second novel, No Longer at Ease, published in 1960, will be discussed. The setting of the novel is Lagos, Nigeria and Umuofia, Nigeria during the 1950s, before Nigeria attained independence from Great Britain. The novel, No Longer at Ease begins with Obi Okonkwo on trial, charged for accepting a bribe. However, using flashback, the author takes us back to the point before Obi’s departure

The poem’s words echo through your mind, revealing a haunting display. Eleanora Fagan, professionally known as Billie Holiday, performed Strange fruit. She sang the poem not in a melody, but in a screeching tone creating an alarming show. The timbre of her voice’s pitch was intense. In other words, the way Billie Holiday sang Strange Fruit in a serious voice, confirms that the poem is not to joke about because it is based on a true story. It is important to realize, that the poem relates to history because it demonstrates how demented racism dominated in the