The Ragged Old Flag: Poem Analysis

302 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: What does the american flag mean to me

I believe people lack respect for the flag and what it stands for. Although most people are proud to be an American, some don’t understand what it truly means to be an American. The flag has a history, and should be respected because of that history. Although most believe that respect should be earned, our flag has earned this many times over. And I believe that our flag is taken for granted. In Johnny Cash’s song, The Ragged Old Flag it says, “In her own good land here she’s been abused. She’s been burned, dishonored, denied and refused.” To me this means that people have stopped honoring all that it stands for. The flag stands for all of the battles and sacrifices the United States has had to make to get it to where it is today. People

Show More
Related

  • The Colonel Poem Analysis

    1347 Words  | 3 Pages

    Currently in the United States, many of us are afraid of the future. There have been many recent events that have stirred up fear in this country, especially tensions regarding human rights. In Carolyn Forché’s “The Colonel,” the speaker tells us her story of when she had to deal with the mistreatment of others. The speaker is telling us her story of meeting the colonel to show us the horrible things that have happened in the fight for justice and to encourage us to speak up. She tells us this story because she does not want others to end up the way that the ears did. The speaker wants us to stay strong and fight for justice when we begin to live in a state of constant fear.

    Read More

  • Flag-Burning is No Crime

    1153 Words  | 3 Pages

    Stripes and stars forever, right? Well, what exactly does that mean? The American Flag can be seen almost anywhere. From the high-school, to the ball park, and even in our homes, the American flag stands as a symbol of all that is good and true in America. When one thinks of the flag, they usually think of the blood that was shed for this country. It was shed so that we could have liberties, such as, freedom of speech and expression, which fall under the first amendment rights of the Constitution. However, when you think of a burning flag, what comes to mind? One might say it shows disrespect and hatred to a country that has given so much. In the case of Texas v. Johnson, Gregory Lee Johnson was accused of desecrating a sacred object, but, his actions were protected by the First Amendment. Although his actions may have been offensive, he did not utter fighting words. By burning the flag, Johnson did not infringe upon another's natural human rights. He was simply expressing his outrage towards the government, which is within the jurisdiction of the First Amendment.

    Read More

  • The American Flag Pros And Cons

    580 Words  | 2 Pages

    To the Majority Opinion it’s a flag of our nation but to the Dissenting opinion its means more than just a flag. It means “White signifies purity and innocence, Red, hardiness & velour, and Blue, the color of the Chief (the broad band above the stripes) signifies vigilance, perseverance & justice." In this case the Dissenting opinion gave reasons why flag burning should be banned. Eventually Congress passed the Flag Protection Act of 1989. The Act banned flag burning regardless of whether the person burning the flag intended to cause offense to

    Read More

  • Americanized: Poem Analysis

    1050 Words  | 3 Pages

    This darkly satiric poem is about cultural imperialism. Dawe uses an extended metaphor: the mother is America and the child represents a younger, developing nation, which is slowly being imbued with American value systems. The figure of a mother becomes synonymous with the United States. Even this most basic of human relationships has been perverted by the consumer culture. The poem begins with the seemingly positive statement of fact 'She loves him ...’. The punctuation however creates a feeling of unease, that all is not as it seems, that there is a subtext that qualifies this apparently natural emotional attachment. From the outset it is established that the child has no real choice, that he must accept the 'beneficence of that motherhood', that the nature of relationships will always be one where the more powerful figure exerts control over the less developed, weaker being. The verb 'beamed' suggests powerful sunlight, the emotional power of the dominant person: the mother. The stanza concludes with a rhetorical question, as if undeniably the child must accept the mother's gift of love. Dawe then moves on to examine the nature of that form of maternal love. The second stanza deals with the way that the mother comforts the child, 'Shoosh ... shoosh ... whenever a vague passing spasm of loss troubles him'. The alliterative description of her 'fat friendly features' suggests comfort and warmth. In this world pain is repressed, real emotion pacified, in order to maintain the illusion that the world is perfect. One must not question the wisdom of the omnipotent mother figure. The phrase 'She loves him...' is repeated. This action of loving is seen as protecting, insulating the child. In much the same way our consumer cultur...

    Read More

  • Is Flag Burning protected under the First Amendment?

    1567 Words  | 4 Pages

    In order to help answer this question, let’s begin by defining what a flag is. The proponents (veterans, Citizens Flag Alliance, and other organizations of this type) of the amendment for protection of the flag define the flag as a “cultural artifact with meaning, significance, and usage determined by the particular system employing it (Guenter 18).” Some flag historians have recognized the impact of culture on the shifting significance and usage of the national banner, although no one has ventured a full-scale probe of the subject (Guenter 16). The flag in the beginning was a symbol of freedom and enlightenment. The flag design has changed.

    Read More

  • What the American Flag Means to Me

    319 Words  | 1 Pages

    Some people see the American flag as patriotism. These people are the ones who have their flags out all year around. The ones who always have them flying high. Some of these people even have American flags hanging off their cars. To some people the American flag is their son or daughter who they have lost either in the line of duty in the military, on the police force, or even the fire department. Although its sad but true some Americans have no patriotism and could care less what happens around them. These people will only care if it affects them in a harmful way.

    Read More

  • The Disgrace of Flag Burning

    815 Words  | 2 Pages

    Some have seen friends and family get tortured and murdered by their own government for daring to do things we take for granted every day.  For those who risked everything simply for the chance to become an American....what kind of feelings do they have for the flag when they Pledge Allegiance the first time?  Go to a naturalization ceremony and see for yourself, the tears of pride, the thanks, the love and respect of this nation, as they finally embrace the American flag as their own.  Ask one of them if it would be OK to tear up the flag.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On The Confederate Flag

    730 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Confederate flag was used symbolically during the Civil War. For Southerner’s, the flag represented a source of southern pride as well as a way of remembering the fallen Confederates. As the Civil War proceeded, the meaning of the flag began to change. Currently, the flag is being used as a symbol of racism. Due to this change in meaning, controversy over the flag has been exponentially growing.

    Read More

  • Unfurling the Meaning of 'Old Glory': A Personal Perspective

    600 Words  | 2 Pages

    Provided with just that, that name, that flag, is deeper than people view it to be, to me it represents our freedom, it represents all the young men who left their children, wives, mothers to leave for war, they were lucky enough to even return home. Numerous take advantage of the flag today by the reason of they have a choice too, considering they don't know what it's like to live in a time where children and adults were controlled by the government, we still are today but not as restrained. They went through nothing but a dry spell, they were still fighting for their rights and recieved punishment for making their voice heard, could you imagine? Just speaking your mind as you do today? And recieve punishment for your actions? Back then you couldn't pull the "I want a Lawyer" they didn't give you no options, nothing at

    Read More

  • The First American Flag: The Betsy Ross Poem

    243 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Betsy Ross flag was designed during the American Revolution in 1776. It was the first American flag made by none other than Elizabeth Griscom, also known as Betsy Ross. The flag has an alternating red and white base with thirteen stars to represent the thirteen colonies. The stars are arranged in a circle which make it very easy to identify it to be the Betsy Ross flag.

    Read More

  • Essay On Flag Desecration

    1373 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many people are very offended by burning America’s “national symbol” and view the act as “un-patriotic” and extremely disrespectfu8l towards the nation, its history and heritage. Many Americans believed that flag burning and desecration should be criminalized. However, other citizens believe that flag desecration is protected under the constitution and should be legal.

    Read More

  • Flag Burning

    1062 Words  | 3 Pages

    The dissenting opinion to the previous idea is that the government's legitimate interest in preserving the symbolic value of the flag is, however, essentially the same that may have motivated a particular act of flag burning. The flag uniquely symbolizes the ideas of liberty, equality, and tolerance -- ideas that Americans have passionately defended and debated throughout our history. The flag embodies the spirit of our national commitment to those ideals. To the world, the flag is our promise that we will continue to strive for these ideals. To us, the flag is a reminder both that the struggle for li...

    Read More

  • Flag Burning Editorial

    958 Words  | 2 Pages

    The people who are against flag burning seem to generally be those who have served this country through war and through other such ways. They are older people who believe that this country is quite wonderful if not almost perfect. They have a strong sense of patriotism to this country and would die for what it stands for: liberty and freedom. They could compare it to the burning of crosses in front of a church or to the way the Nazis turned a very beautiful symbol into a racial and religious hate badge for murderers. Disrespect for tradition is what it boils down to. From a young age we are conditioned to blindly respect that flag hanging from a pole and to pledge out allegiance to it without even knowing what it truly is. It has been tradition for at least three generations. People who have been prisoners of war or people who fought for this country have a reason to respect it so much. The have fought long and hard for what we have and respect it. Some of our generation doesn’t realize how lucky we have it.

    Read More

  • Explain What Our Flag Mean To Me

    240 Words  | 1 Pages

    Have you ever stopped to think, what does our flag mean to me? Well to me, our flag means justice, united, hope and sacrifice. Let me explain word by word. The word justice is like saying all of the police men and women out there. They bring criminals to justice so then they can face their consequences. Now we go to the word sacrifice. Sacrifice to me means all of the solders out there sacrificing their lives to keep us safe, to let us free and most important to keep the United States of America together. Now we go the word, united. United to me means the two that we just talked about. We talked about sacrifice, we talked about justice and they both keep us united in many ways. Since the soldiers risk their lives to keep us safe, they also

    Read More

  • The Falling Soldier Poem Analysis

    781 Words  | 2 Pages

    ‘The Falling Soldier’ is one of many poems by Duffy which deals with the subject of human mortality. Duffy expresses what could have been over a harsh reality; this is characteristic of her as also seen in ‘Last Post’ and ‘Passing Bells’ which both seem to be largely influenced by poet peer Wilfred Owen’s personal experiences of war. In the ‘The Falling Soldier’ Duffy paradoxically captures the essence of Robert Capa’s famous photograph of a man falling after being shot during the Spanish Civil War (1936). She employs the form of an impersonal narrative voice, using second person to question the possibilities, to explore the tragic and cyclical nature of war. The futile reality of war contrasts to her central theme in ‘The Bees’ anthology of bees symbolising the grace left in humanity.

    Read More

More about The Ragged Old Flag: Poem Analysis

Open Document