“Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday conveys the inhumane, gory lynchings of African-Americans in the American South, and how this highly unnatural act had entrenched itself into the society and culture of the South, almost as if it were an agricultural crop. Although the song did not originate from Holiday, her first performance of it in 1939 in New York City and successive recording of the song became highly popular for their emotional power (“Strange fruit,” 2017). The lyrics in the song highlight the contrast between the natural beauty and apparent sophistication of the agricultural South with the brutal violence of lynchings. Holiday communicates these rather disturbing lyrics through a peculiarly serene vocal delivery, accompanied by a hymn-like …show more content…
The dead black person hanging from a tree is described as “fruit for the crows to pluck/For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck/For the sun to rot, for the trees to drop.” During this portion of the song, one can hear the tremolo of the piano building in volume and ending with a staccato at the end of each line. Musically, this adds an element of suspense, and emphasizes the last dependent clause, effectively adding heaviness to the entire section. From the viewpoint of anyone other than racist white southerners in the 20th century, it is extremely troubling that the violent murder of black people had become so integrated into natural cycles, which seem to be more encompassing and absolute than societal customs. The lyrics attempt to transcend societal ingroups and outgroups, political issues of personal and peripheral interest and the concepts of time and place by describing how pointless violence, a moral rebellion against nature, has become part of nature. However, my interpretation of the intentions of the songwriter may be informed by my background information about the post-Reconstruction South and my hardline stance against systemic violence and white
As I gazed across the book isles and leaned over carefully to pick one up out of the old dusty vaults of the library, a familiar object caught my eye in the poetry section. A picture in time stood still on this book, of two African American men both holding guitars. I immediately was attracted to this book of poems. For the Confederate Dead, by Kevin Young, is what it read on the front in cursive lettering. I turned to the back of the book and “Jazz“, and “blues” popped out of the paper back book and into my brain. Sometimes you can judge a book by it’s cover, I thought. Kevin Young’s For the Confederate Dead is a book of poems influenced by blues and jazz in the deep rural parts of the south.
Billie Holiday’s “Strange Fruit “is probably one of the greatest songs composed telling the chilling story about lynching. A little unknown fact is that it was written by a Jewish man by the name of Abel Meeropol. Initially “Strange Fruit” originated as a poem written by Abel Meeropol, as a protest against lynching of African Americans. Meeropol meet Holiday in a bar, where she read the poem, and decided to make the poem into a song. The record made it to No. 16 on the charts in July 1939. This song is probably Holiday’s most famous song she ever sung throughout her whole life. In the end Strange fruit forces listeners to relive the tragic horrors of living in America as an African American. The vivid lyrics paints a picture that causes a person
Gaining recognition through Food & Liquor, Fiasco’s popularity has grown tremendously. Much of the reason was due to his approach to rap. While he does rap about mainstream themes such as sex, money, and drugs, Fiasco also shares his concerns about the American government and politics, foreign affairs, and racism in our culture, capturing a more mature audience’s attention. Through his music, Lupe Fiasco represents the voice of Modern America by informing his listeners about the modern corrupt practices in the United States and asserting his opinions on them through his music. In his song “Bitch Bad”, Fiasco describes how the vulgar word “bitch” is used throughout American society carelessly and in ways it shouldn’t be due it's degrading denotation. His song “Strange Fruition” reiterates the message in Billie Holiday’s largely popular song “Strange Fruit” and incorporates the modern take on racism in the United States. The messages in both these songs portray the depravity in present American culture.
In Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday, and Chapter 15 in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, they both represent the idea of racial mob lynching. In the song, there is a “fruit for the crows to pluck” when the Old Sarum in To Kill a Mockingbird said that Atticus “[knew] what [they] want.” So the Old Sarum asked Atticus to “get aside from the door” since they “Called ‘em off on a snipe hunt.” After the fruit in Strange Fruit suddenly smelled like blood and flesh, the fruit appeared as if it could be plucked by crows.This illustrates how the Old Sarum, a mob of white people who despise blacks, attempted to storm inside the Maycomb county’s Prison so that they could kill Tom Robinson, who was a African American accused of crime.
In Bitter Fruit the character of Mikey physically represents the barrier of the past to the present. While he did not experience apartheid violence, he is a child of rape performed under the regime. His body is a literal figure of violence. When Mikey discovers his history, he recognizes that “he can no longer think of the future without confronting his past” (Dangor 131). Rather than attempting to reconcile the two, Mikey is influenced by his golden rule “look to the future, always” and decided like Marion’s parents, to annihilate his past (Dangor 131). For the crime of his conception, he shoots his father. In killing his mother’s rapist, he is obliterating the hold of the past rather than accepting it. Rather than uniting anyone, he
It is difficult to imagine American culture without the influence of blues. Thousands of hit songs, hundreds of movie sound tracks, and countless performances of all types have been enriched by the music of poor black farmers struggling to survive in the Mississippi Delta. This unique cultural legacy, spawned in the poorest and most segregated corner of America, has shaped the world’s perception of our country. In the blues we can still hear the tragedy of poverty, the work songs of slaves, the rhythms of the Mississippi, and the struggle for survival that formed the culture of the Delta – and that in turn helped form the identity we know as American.¬¬
In the 1900s, the United States was a nation that took part in racism and, eventually, took part in the lynching of African Americans. “Strange Fruit”, a poem written by Abel Meeropol, and the song being performed by Billie Holiday, is a poem that demonstrates the horror of the author to discover the happenings of a lynching and to see the image of one taking place. The poem was widely known as a song sung by Billie Holiday in 1939 and was written and published by Abel Meeropol in 1937 being the first literary writing to publicly object lynching. Abel Meeropol was a Jewish man and an English teacher for 17 years. He adopted two children, Robert and Michael, after their parents, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, were executed. The literary works were
Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is an autobiography that describes the coming of age of a Southern black girl who overcomes society’s cruelty as she grows up. Taking place in Stamps, Kansas during the 1930s, the autobiography captures Marguerite Ann Johnson’s, or Maya’s, battle of finding herself and coming to terms with who she is while growing up in a time period comprised of oppression and discrimination. Furthermore, Maya endures many childhood hardships due to her race, and she defeats these obstacles with her intelligence and fortitude. Thus, Maya Angelou utilizes her vividly detailed experiences of racism’s impact on her and her resistance to racism to demonstrate the struggle of the Southern black girl who grows up in a society overwhelmed with white superiority.
Nikky Finney (1957- ) has always been involved in the struggle of southern black people interweaving the personal and the public in her depiction of social issues such as family, birth, death, sex, violence and relationships. Her poems cover a wide range of examples: a terrified woman on a roof, Rosa Parks, a Civil Rights symbol, and Condoleezza Rice, former Secretary of State, to name just a few. The dialogue is basic to this volume where historical allusions to prominent figures touch upon important sociopolitical issues. I argue that “Red Velvet” and “Left”, from
“Fruits and Words” by Aimee Bender a short story that is full of symbolism and metaphors. The protagonist struggles with her relationship with steve, and on the road she discovers a strong craving for a mango. The mangos and the words symbolize the protagonist's lost hope and dying relationship.
Schoettler, Carl. "Tinged with Sorrow but Sung with Love; Blues: `Strange Fruit,' the Mournful Dirge about Lynching, is Forever Linked with Billie Holiday. A New Book about the Singer from Baltimore Recalls the Moment She Introduced it." The Baltimore Sun Jun 13 2000: 1.F. ProQuest Central. 16 Nov. 2011
The barbarous images illustrated in the poems of tortured souls were so harsh to picture and not even experience in real life. In the first poem “Strange Fruit,” we get this image of discrimination
“Inventions whereby they lynch men”. (Hill, Line 57) Lynching was very popular in the climax period of racial equality against African Americans. This was considered a corporal type of discipline, slaves didn’t have to get in trouble to receive this most of the time whites would be bored and band together and go find and lynch and African American regardless of sex or age. Whites would tie an African American male or female to a wooden cross or pole and burn them alive and just sit back and watch. This type of behavior is demonic and shows how strong racial equality against black people can be. Hill uses her voice to shine light this topic, especially the people who were ignorant to the fact these atrocities took place. “Our communities are being destroyed by racial tension - and we're too polite to talk about it. “(Randall L. Stephenson) this is a very accurate statement applying directly this country. Race has forever been a very sensitive subject in this country so most people develop their thought and stereotypes towards a certain group of people and socialize to a certain extent with other groups of people according to their stereotypes. These people never actually talk about how they really feel about a certain group of people because they don’t want to be judged. Hill uses her poem “Mystery of Iniquity” to bring memories back on race inequality against
Southern trees bear a strange fruitBlood on the leaves and blood at the rootBlack bodies swingin' in the Southern breezeStrange fruit hangin' from the poplar treesPastoral scene of the gallant SouthThe bulgin' eyes and the twisted mouthScent of magnolias sweet and freshThen the sudden smell of burnin' fleshHere is a fruit for the crows to pluckFor the rain to gather, for the wind to suckFor the sun to rot, for the tree to dropHere is a strange and bitter crop
You’re walking down a beautiful southern country road on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The cool breeze lightly kisses your skin as it combats the heat from the blazing sun. You happen upon a tree that seems to be a perfect spot for an afternoon nap, or for a young couple to carve their initials into to mark their love forever. This tree has an enormous amount of positive potential, but instead of seeing these wondrously human sites you see an example of the darkest side of humanity. Green leaves now drip red with the life once held inside the dark skinned carcass which now hangs stretched and pale from a rope. You find yourself horrified that the breeze you were so thankful for moments ago is the only animus left to move him to and fro.