Comparing The Song '4 Your Eyez Only And Love's Philosophy'

1763 Words4 Pages

English Thesis – Presentation – Communications and Meaning

Introduction

Good morning/afternoon everyone. Today I’m going to be comparing two completely different expressions in the realm of poetry.

I will compare hip hop to a traditional form of poetry. Specifically, the song ‘4 your eyez only’ by Jermaine Cole and the love poem ‘Love’s philosophy’ By Percy Bysshe Shelley. By doing so, I will show you how both will draw upon some similar poetic literacies, yet have largely different mechanisms of expression in terms of their delivery styles, language and imagery.

Specifically I will explore the subject, purpose, emotion, and craftsmanship of each.

Subject

The rap song 4 your eyez only tells a fictional story about James, who is delivering …show more content…

It really made it feel like i was listening to a tape recorded message on playback as I listened to the song over and over and over again to analyse the song.

Summary: “4 your eyez only” is a practice of empathy, which asks the listener to consider an unheard man’s point of view. Jermaine Cole creates a nine minute journey in which we cycle through the many complexities and themes in the life of an african american man living in the poor inner city and the skewed ideology of what it means to be a real man. He concludes to the idea that James was a good man, because he knew what was most important in life, and that was his love for his daughter, and that ideology is the key to bringing about a better world. Love.

Love’s philosophy

Subject

While Cole followed the structure of a sonnet in delivering a message of love, so too did Percy Bysshe Shelley with his poem Love’s philosophy published in 1819. While a little simpler than 4 your eyez only, it too uses traditional poetry writing techniques and coveys the same primary message of love.

Insert poem

Purpose

Bysshe Shelley was proclaiming his love to a prospective lover and seeking to start a relationship.

Open Document