Analyzing Frame John Mayer's Song Belief

Frame John Mayer's song "Belief" came out on the album Continuum, which was released in 2006. The album contains multiple songs that are viewed as controversial towards the war in Iraq, including the song "Waiting on the World to Change". Mayer never supported the war or George Bush in any way, so it was only a matter of time before he voiced his opinion through his music. John Mayer is an American singer-songwriter and producer, and was born in Connecticut. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, before moving to Atlanta in 1997, where he polished his skills and found his calling. His first few albums were very successful, winning him his first Grammy in 2003 for "Your Body is a Wonderland". Aside from being an award winning artist,

John Mayer has been dubbed an "accidental racist" and has had a few controversial interviews, one in which he sexually exploited a few of his exes. He is also coincidentally known for dating his fair share of women, almost more than he is known for making feel-good music. John Mayer is a creative, controversial, soulful and strongly opinionated artist. To me, he is a walking contradiction. Mayer's argument is directed to his listeners that vary in age, but for the most part it seems like it is directed towards his younger audience. In "Waiting on the World to Change", another song from his album Continuum, John Mayer clearly points out his audience is the youth of America. Of course the people who buy his albums care for what he has to say, so his audience is the people who want to listen and appreciate what he has to say. He has never been the kind of artist that forces his views on to his listeners. If you agree with his opinion, enjoy the song; if not, then don't listen to it. To him, it is our generation that can truly make a difference, and he states that in nearly every song on his

John Mayer’s strongest appeal in his argument is his pathos, as is in most of his songs. Emotions are a very influential part of an argument and John Mayer aims at two very important emotions; fear and sadness. In the final part of his song John appeals to these two emotions. John says, “What puts a hundred thousand children in the sand/ Belief can/ Belief can/ what puts the folded flag inside his mother’s hand/ Belief can/ Belief can (Mayer 7).” John Mayer is playing on the appeal of fear by saying a war based on belief brings nothing but fear, and ultimately death. Fear starts with the possibility of losing your child in a meaningless war that cannot be won, and ends with sadness when a mother of a soldier has to cope with her child's death. Everyone during that time was affected by the war, some more than others, but it still took its toll on the world. This part of John Mayer’s argument is his strongest because it appealed to everyone, not just his listeners. This aspect of John Mayer’s argument deals mainly with cultural assumptions and