Similarities Between Jorgenson's Monologue And Mahomet

Jon Jorgenson’s motivational monologue and Mahomet-Seymour High School’s dance created a composition that is unlike traditional literature. These girls are able to display Jorgenson’s monologue in a manner that is comparable to contemporary literature today. Jon uses the phrase, “what room does fear have,” repetitively as a literary device throughout his entire speech. His expressive oration brings meaning to the dance and reveals how literature can take diverse forms. “What Are You Afraid of” and the addition of the dance contains features that are considered conventional literature as well as modern adaptations. The two are combined together to create an inspirational and hopeful feeling within the audience, as well as provoking the audience

to think intellectually deeper into the meaning of literature. In the dance “What Room Does Fear Have,” Jon Jorgenson’s speech and the dance team create a memorable performance; it proves this dance and spoken word can be identified as literature with the help of purposeful movements, emotional monologue (both religious and non-religious versions), and the addition of the intensifying background instrumental.
The dancers are dressed in all black until he asks the question, “what room does fear have,” (Jorgenson) this dark solemn beginning contains the rising action.

Then the danseuses pull down fabric from their shoulders and are instantly changed into a white outfit with a pink belt. At this point, the mood shifts to a hopeful and uplifting feeling. That moment is considered the climax. In this section, the instrumental also starts which creates an even greater impact. The falling action includes Jon Jorgenson wrapping up his speech with, “I’ll ask you one last time, what room does fear have when I make room for love”. Finally, ending it with the question, “what are you afraid”

(Jorgenson).
Jon Jorgenson tells a story using striking words that leaves a lasting impression in the minds of the audience. He states, “what room does fear have when I discover strength, embrace courage, remember peace, declare truth, choose joy, experience life, and conquer death” (Jorgenson). These powerful words speak loudly by themselves plus the addition of the passionate dance turns this piece into literature. The words do not tell an ordinary story of boy meets girl, they fall in love, they live happily ever after. Instead, it conveys a story telling why fear should not control one’s life. A story of stepping out of the boundaries that fear surrounds people with and making room for love and growth.
In the motivational speech done without the dance, the listener is told about God and how He tells us 365 times in The Bible, do not be afraid (Jorgenson). The original purpose of this speech was to inform the listener to not be afraid because God is always there and will take care of all of His followers. The basic idea of “do not be afraid” is also stated in ways like, “fear not”, and “have courage” throughout The Bible. After thinking more thoroughly, I came to the conclusion that a lot of popular verses contain these comforting words. In God’s Word® Translation, Isaiah 35:4 states, “Tell those who are terrified, ‘Be brave; don’t be afraid….’”(Isaiah 35 GWT). By making the connection to such a distinguished book Jorgenson allows for a vaster audience to relate to it. Which in the end allows more people to be exposed to this version of literature. Thus creating a wider spectrum of what literature can be.
Although the version with the dance lacks the religious side, the speech does not lose its powerful message.

In fact, by excluding God and all religious aspects the monologue can now be shared to an even larger audience than before. Continuing his speech, Jon declares, “But then I did a little research and by that I mean I researched and researched and researched over and over again and through all of my researching I keep coming up with the same exact question” (Jorgenson). At this point in the dance, the dancers are preforming a turn called a fouetté. As Jorgenson repeats himself they spin around and around; this motion is repetitive just like his statement. The actions within the dance create pictures that coincide with the words. Jon says, “when I lean on hope,” (Jorgenson) and the dancers all lean together. Throughout the entire dance this pattern repeats itself. Jorgenson verbalizes a motion and the dancers carry it out. Another example of this is when he says, “I’ll ask you again, what room does fear have when I step out of the darkness and I bask in the light”. The dancers lift their legs dramatically and step as if they are stepping out of the darkness like the quote entails. Every movement in this dance functions as a depiction of the monologue. In an interview with Jade Dowling, a dancer of 16 years, she claims that, “none of the motions in any dance are used without purpose. Whether it is to portray a certain word, action, or phrase, or if the motion is to

transition into another section of the dance. No part of a dance is meaningless” (Dowling). Now analyzing it in the way Jade describes it to common literature, as in a book, there is not an great difference. Each sentence, paragraph, and chapter has a purpose to serve, great or small.
In addition to the monologue and the dance, the final piece of the puzzle comes into play in the middle of the performance. The instrumental background as said before it starts once the dancers change outfits. The first half of the dance contains no music just the motivational voice of Jon Jorgenson. So the music in the background creates an unforgettable impact. It brings more emotions into the actions of the dancers, and it continually builds in intensity until the last statement made by Jorgenson. He says, “what are you afraid of,” and the quick cut off of all the music brings the attention back to the monologue at this moment. This allows the final words to sink in in their entirety. Looking at the music in a literature based stand point it simply enhances the highlights of the storyline. The music serves the same purpose an adjective does in a story. Thus, revealing another aspect of how this performance functions as literature.
The definition of literature coming straight from the dictionary is, “writings in which expression and form, in connection with ideas of permanent and universal interest, are characteristic or essential features, as poetry, novels, history, biography, and essays,”(dictionary). Most can easily see how the speech can be considered literature. Jon Jorgenson uses literary devices, more specifically he uses repetition. This repetition catches the reader, or listener’s attention. In no way do I consider Jorgenson as good of a speaker as Martin Luther King Jr., but I do think his repetition has an impact comparable to MLK Jr.’s, “I have a dream” speech. Although this renowned speech was given over 50 years ago we still study the meaning behind it in classes. The use of repetition makes Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech easier to remember. Maybe Jon did not base his repetitiveness of the success of MLK Jr.’s speech, but he still used the same concept to instill the meaning of his speech in his audience’s minds.
Now, the tricky part of arguing that this performance is literature comes down to the dance. How does the dance qualify? Personally, my definition of literature is a written story, a movie, or another form of art that can be studied. I think of it this way because in any English class I have taken my teacher has tied in a movie to something we studied. Whether the book we read had a film or play version, or a poem described a certain art piece. So I have no problem in believing that a dance could be incorporated into an English class as a lesson. The definition of literature holds different meanings for everyone, but I think we can all agree when I say that this dance tells a story in an uncommon way. The performance allows for people to be exposed to a new form of literature that they might not have realized existed before.
Literature should be something that inspires and teaches. It should be something that can be taught in a classroom as an intellectual attribute and also be applied to everyday life. Jon Jorgenson’s monologue and the Mahomet-Seymour High School dance functionalizes on three different levels: a religious, an educational, and a personal level. “What Room Does Fear Have,” belongs in the category of literature because it is possible to study this piece and learn from it. It stimulates the minds of the audience to think deeper into the meaning of each motion in the dance as well as the eloquent words by Jon Jorgenson. The religious aspects of the original monologue and the non-religious version heard with the dance allows for additional ways to study this performance, making it a universal piece to learn from. The performance can be applied to life in various different contexts which I think further qualifies it as literature.