James Alan McPherson short story “Why I Like Country Music” deals with the cultural differences separating the North and the South in the United States throughout the mid-1900’s. The couple in the story are both black but are still segregated by culture. The narrator was born in the South while his wife Gloria was born in the North. This short story summarizes how even people who are ethnically similar can be culturally different. Furthermore, the best thing to do is look past cultural differences for the greater good. The narrator of the story is in conflict with himself and his wife because he is trying to understand why he fancies country music and she doesn't. “I have wondered why I like this music and this dance”. When the narrator hears the country music he is reminded of his childhood when he first discovered this genre of music. Even as a child, the narrator was avidly aware of differences between the North and South. We know this because as a child he claims the “Good life said to exist in those far Northern places”. This belief was brought up upon cultural differences in these different areas. What's ironic about this story is that the narrator is introduced to square …show more content…
Gloria stereotypes country music as being “hillbilly stuff” due to her cultural upbringing. As a Northerner, she views country music as an inferior product from the South. Gloria neglects to see that she doesn't like country music because of where she grew up and what she was exposed to as a child. When the narrator is trying to understand why his wife doesn't like country music he says, “Perhaps it is because Gloria is third generation Northern-born”. This analysis by the narrator is one of the reasons why Gloria would be encouraged to assimilate into the Northern culture. Just like her husband Gloria was influenced by her surroundings to form opinions influenced by stereotyping and
In Bobbie Ann Mason's "Shiloh" and Ryan Harty's "Why the Sky Turns Red when the Sun Goes Down", the couple in both stories are standing at the crossroads of their lives where changes have happened and decisions have to be made. Having to stay at home after a job-related incident, Leroy Moffitt in "Shiloh", realizes how much the relationship, between his wife and him, has changed over the years. Although they have known each other and stayed as husband and wife for such a long time, they have "forgotten a lot about each other" the thoughts and feelings they had, the reasons which made them fall in love with each other. Similarly, in "Why the Sky Turns Red when the Sun Goes Down", the couple are faced with the apprehension of a seemingly permanent change in their relationship. Both have seemed to reach a point where "[they couldn't] go on".
At the end of the day, racism and prejudice will always exist in some form for whatever reason is most convenient. Additionally, it’s not as if fans of country music are all raging bigots who dream of segregation and a return to slavery-driven southern values. After all, there are plenty of ‘southern pride’ songs that don’t feature race, nativism, and are beloved by most without an ulterior message that is appreciated by Stormfront. After all, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Sweet Home Alabama features anti-segregation lyrics. Charlie Daniels Band wrote and performed The Devil Went Down to Georgia, lyrically referencing the south as far as Georgia by name alone. Yet both of these are hailed as quintessentially southern pride songs, meaning that southern pride isn’t the same as white pride. The reason the comparison matters, then, is because there is a significant overlap between the two. It is certainly possible to enjoy country music without wishing for a return to Aryan values, and the majority of country music doesn’t advocate it. But enough popular songs feature nativism as a theme to the point that it shouldn’t be ignored. There is a tangible connection between Southern Pride and nativism through music, and a definite connection between nativism and the White Pride movement. Music connects people and spreads ideas; culturally relevant music tends to stay around for a lifetime. Music has power, and the power of hate music is not one that should be
In James McPherson’s novel, What They Fought For, a variety of Civil War soldier documents are examined to show the diverse personal beliefs and motives for being involved in the war. McPherson’s sample, “is biased toward genuine fighting soldiers” (McPherson, 17) meaning he discusses what the ordinary soldier fought for. The Confederacy was often viewed as the favorable side because their life style relied on the war; Confederates surrounded their lives with practices like slavery and agriculture, and these practices were at stake during the war. On the other hand, Northerners fought to keep the country together. Although the Civil War was brutal, McPherson presents his research to show the dedication and patriotism of the soldiers that fought and died for a cause.
Werner, Craig Hansen. 2006. A change is gonna come: music, race & the soul of America. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
The book depicts the story of culture conflicts of the music, which arose from the introduction of the foot-tapping, hip-swaying music now known as rock n' roll (Graarrq). The outcome of rock n’ roll coincided with tremendous uproar in the movement to grant civil rights to African American. Trapped in the racial politics of the 1950s, rock n’ roll was credited with and criticized for promoting integration and economic opportunity for blacks while bringing to “mainstream” cloture black styles and values (Altschuler). Black values were looked over and kind of not important to whites. Whites were very much so well treated then blacks were, however no one spoke out until the outcome of rock n’ roll.
Country music, as we know it today, was first called “Hillbilly music”. The name “Country” was not widely used until around the 1950s. The creation of this Hillbilly music, very much like American culture, was influenced from many different cultures and styles of music.
Since the beginning of the essay the narrator and her father lived in a house “like the Civil War battleground it was” (Kennedy 146). The narrator did not agree with her dad’s political views or understood his love of guns. Contrast to her twin sister, the narrator has a very artistic personality. Her difference in personality caused the narrators frustration towards her father. “Dad and I started bickering in earnest when I was fourteen” (Kennedy 147). The author shows the narrator and her father had started seeing different since she was young. The narrator was frustrated with her father stubbornness and the way she felt she was being treated. “My domain was the cramped, cold space known as the music room” (Kennedy 148). The narrator felt like she was lonely and excluded from her family because of her difference in views. As the narrator’s father tries to get her somewhat involved in his love of cannons and guns, the narrator notices that they have similar interests. “I’ve given this a lot of thought- how to convey the giddiness I felt when the cannon shot off” (Kennedy 150). In addition, the narrator and her father both shared an enjoyment for the loud noise the cannon produced and although they both had opposing political views, they were involved in politics. The author
Country music originated in the Appalachian mountains of the Southern United States and has traditional folk roots that date from the early 20th century. The commercial history of country music began in the Southern United States in the 1920’s, during a ‘period of intense modernization’ (Ellison, 1995). It wasn’t until this time that country was considered a viable music genre. It was first identified as ‘hillbilly’ music in 1925 and later became known officially as ‘country’ by its designation on the Billboard Music charts (Shmoop, 2014). Widely considered the ‘Mother Church’ of country, the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville became the home of many emerging and already established artists (Tichi, 1994:21). Coupled with the rise of radio and barn dance programs, country’s popularity increased greatly. Ellison (1995) describes country’s evolution from ‘rustic radio programs’ to a genre with an ‘extensive national network of fans unparalled in other forms of popular music’. During the 1930’s, the Great Depression assisted in the spread of country music throughout the US, with many poor unemployed Southerners migrating north, t...
Lewis, George H. “Lap Dancer or Hillbilly Deluxe? The Cultural Constructions of Modern Country Music”. Journal of Popular Culture, Winter 97, Vol. 31 Issue 3, p163-173, 11p
Like Martin Luther King Jr. said, “We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” In the 1950’s the South was heavily racially segregated. Elvis Presley unintentionally put himself in the position to become a valuable instrument in the battle against segregation. “Without casting himself as a fighter for racial equality, Elvis became a subversive standard bearer for cultural desegregation at a time when the codified racism of the South was under increasing pressure.” How did an uneducated white hillbilly from the south influence both black and white teenagers against segregation? It was quite simple, for Elvis Presley had a unique talent of combining traditional black music; such as the blues and jazz, with the traditional white music; like country and white gospel. This unique style of blending different types of music, gave Elvis the edge on the musical racial barriers America was facing; and open the path for both sides to enjoy the music together and therefore desegregated.
In the short story “Cornet at night” by Sinclair Ross, Tom Dickson is a young farm boy who lives on a farm with his parents. He is very naive and has not had a chance to experience the outside world for his own. He knows only what he learns from the farm and school, but now that he gets to go on a small adventure on his on, he grows up in a variety of ways. One way in which Tom grows up is when he goes to town by himself. He has gone before, but with the security of his parents with him, and for a young boy to go to another town “eight miles north of here” is a large task for such a young boy, thus showing one way that he matures.
Roy, W. (2010). Reds, whites, and blues social movements, folk music, and race in the United States. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
African-American music is a vibrant art form that describes the difficult lives of African American people. This can be proven by examining slave music, which shows its listeners how the slaves felt when they were working, and gives us insight into the problems of slavery; the blues, which expresses the significant connection with American history, discusses what the American spirit looks like and teaches a great deal from the stories it tells; and hip-hop, which started on the streets and includes topics such as misogyny, sex, and black-on-black violence to reveal the reactions to the circumstances faced by modern African Americans. First is about the effect of slave music on American history and African American music. The slave music’s
Country music was brought over by the first European settlers. In medieval times, storytelling was a tradition that allowed history to be recorded when few were able to read and write. When the first British settlers came to America, they brought this tradition with them, along with songs that they had learned in Europe. The people who settled the Appalachian Mountains and the West did not have an easy life and their music gave them an outlet to express their hardships.
Percival Everett’s “The Appropriation of Cultures” (2004), demonstrates the power of a symbol and the meanings that it can carry. In the story, Daniel Barkley is a highly accomplished African American man who graduated from Brown and frequently plays guitar near the campus of The University of South Carolina. From the beginning of the story, Barkley exposes a distinct independent personality that isn’t afraid to break stereotypes or labels. The first scene describes an instance in a bar where white fraternity boys were challenging Barkley to play ‘Dixie’ for them. Instead of refusing, like most would have done, he instead begins to play and take ownership of the song. Later in the story, Barkley decides to purchase a truck with a giant confederate flag decal in the back. Despite the strange stares and confusion