In Steel Drivin’ Man, Scott Nelson informs his audience about his research and the manipulation of John Henry’s ballad throughout the twentieth century. Many white people misinterpreted this ballad and changed it into a happy white man’s story about a hard worker. The struggles that John Henry and his fellow black brothers endured when working on the railroad became erased through white people’s lips. During the late 1800’s, men working driving steel would sing John Henry’s ballad as a reminder of John Henry’s struggles and to not overwork. However, many interpretations use the song to praise him as a prideful man for being able to out-work machines. This interpretation erases the history of the black men singing ballads as a tool to keep pace and not work too fast; otherwise, they would die, as said by Scott Nelson: …show more content…
Although this ballad started as a tool for workers, it became a cultural document in the twentieth century, “It carries a message from the supposedly voiceless, illiterate railway workers of the nineteenth century whom no one expected to leave a trace.” (Nelson, 40) Because of the lack of literacy, the ballad was kept alive for over one hundred years by being down orally and not through solid documentation. Nelson explains, “…African American trackliners’ songs were not so different from documents… They had been passed down, documents without paper.” (Nelson, 27) The black people’s struggles is what allowed for this piece of culture to still exist to this date. In conclusion, the use of a black man’s story through white eyes is unacceptable as it fails to convey the true story behind the ballad. It fails to show the struggles of the people working on the railroads driving steel, the reason it was made and passed down, and the suffering that John Henry endured, knowing that he was destined to live a life driving
Patrick Henry was known as “the Orator of Liberty” and created his name with his speeches. When colonists were divided in 1775, some were hoping to work it out but not Patrick Henry. He thought the only choice was to go to war with Great Britain. Henry uses ethos, pathos, and logos to show his clause for going to war with Britain.
Americans must understand that the horrors of slavery and oppression were not just limited to the South, one reason why the Underground Railroad ran to Canada. Although Fugitive Slave Laws were not dated until 1850, slaves—in this case indentured servants—could not be sure of freedom until they reached Canadian soil. This book gives readers a glimpse of who we might have found as a conductor on the Underground Railroad, and what kind of predicaments they put themselves into for the sake of others. The author’s tone generally seems to sympathize with the abolitionist plight, and she refers to the prejudices of southern Illinois society as a “legacy of shame” (Pirtle 120-121).
The criteria of this essay are just used to inform the readers about what black people had to endure during slavery. Also, showed how whites treated black people. The movie also showed how black people had to deal with how white people treated them.
When first looking at the essay there is a very noticeable aspect to first page of it; that would be the picture of Emmett Till’s deformed body lying bloated and lynched within his casket. The picture strikes an unforgettable image in the reader’s head that is meant to instill the question of how exactly someone could do this to another human being none-the-less a 14 year old teenager. The visual invokes some strong feelings that most people cannot ignore or suppress; those feelings include disgust, anger, fear, and sadness. These feelings are evident in the picture due to the graphic nature of the image and the memories it invokes in readers of past situations they had endured. Being a part of the first page of the essay is what makes this rhetorical device so effective, this puts an image into the reader’s mind of what the African American descent had to endure during the time period and continued to endure for years to come. The image itself had an enormous impact on the civil rights mo...
Troy sings the song, "Please Mr. Engineer, let a man ride the line," which imitates the pleas of a man begging a train conductor to let him ride. In the Harlem Renaissance, a train was a symbol for change.
...ck males may have been their own worst enemy in trying to succeed and create opportunities for themselves. Allowing themselves to be pit against each other, there was no hope of propelling their status while they did not support one another as a whole race. Turning their anger toward each other rather than the white men who had put them in these situations, the struggle of black men transitioned from the fight for justice as a people to a war with other black men, so as to boost themselves in the eyes of the white man. They furthermore allowed themselves to be manipulated, mocked, scorned, and beaten, yet still stood up afterward to do what they were told. As inner-conflict combined with complete oblivion to the racial situation grew, Ellison criticizes African Americans of the time for not banding together and recognizing the problem that was social inequality.
In Douglass’s Narrative, Douglass uses his eloquent storytelling skills and provocative rhetoric to both display the horrors of slavery for Whites and Blacks as well as convince the public that slavery undermines the values of the nation and Christianity. He uses his former mistress, Mrs. Auld, as an example of how slavery corrupts White women, who embody Christian values and nurturance in the home. She transforms from a kind, idealistic exemplar of a proper woman to a complete monster. Furthermore, Douglass appeals to his White audience by distinguishing true Christianity by the one practiced by slave owners. Slavery turns White owners into violent, greedy, and blind hypocrites to the message of God. Finally, he also compares the perils slave escapes are similar to the those of the forefathers who fought for this nation by referencing Patrick Henry. His own bravery for choosing between slavery and potentially fatal consequences for escaping reflects how the American people were willing to die for their their liberty, and this analogy make abolitions a more recognizable and patriotic crusade for American rights. His entire narrative is the epitome of a Transcendentalist, American success story of self-reliance and organized principles to success -with the additional white stamp of
When comparing the two short stories and holding them in tension with each other, it is neither the black woman nor the African American man’s arrogance, but one’s hubris that is the source of the difficulties of one’s race and the demise of oneself. Wright believes that the black woman is the source of difficulties. Hurston believes that the black man’s hubris is the cause of his demise. By holding these two stories in tension with each other, the emerging truth is that hubris is the cause of downfall.
John Henry won, but died shortly after, some say from stroke, others say from exhaustion. Few American myths have achieved more widespread acclaim and acknowledgement than the story of the African American steel driver, John Henry. Though the origins of the tale are unclear, the myth seems to have begun in the postbellum American South. The earliest evidence of the tale dates from the 1880s and was most widely known among African Americans, who would often sing the tale as a working song. Many of the earliest instances of the myth are in the form of songs, often sung by prisoners as they worked. An analysis of the John Henry myth reveals that John Henry represents a man who worked hard and took pride in his work, even though he was living in a place and time where, just like Big Bend, the roads of opportunity were blocked
Baldwin and his ancestors share this common rage because of the reflections their culture has had on the rest of society, a society consisting of white men who have thrived on using false impressions as a weapon throughout American history. Baldwin gives credit to the fact that no one can be held responsible for what history has unfolded, but he remains restless for an explanation about the perception of his ancestors as people. In Baldwin?s essay, his rage becomes more directed as the ?power of the white man? becomes relevant to the misfortune of the American Negro (Baldwin 131). This misfortune creates a fire of rage within Baldwin and the American Negro. As Baldwin?s American Negro continues to build the fire, the white man builds an invisible wall around himself to avoid confrontation about the actions of his ?forefathers? (Baldwin 131). Baldwin?s anger burns through his other emotions as he writes about the enslavement of his ancestors and gives the reader a shameful illusion of a Negro slave having to explai...
But unlike Gregory’s tale, Wilkins’s story lacks figurative language. Though he does use descriptive language, like when he described what his white neighbors thought about him and his African American family moving in: “The prevailing wisdom in the neighborhood was that we were spoiling it and that we ought to go back where we belonged (or, alternatively ought not intrude where we not wanted.)” (Wilkins). The main problem is that there are no metaphors, similes, symbols, alliterations, and so on. But a strong point of this piece is that it is to the point. All the details he put in his story made sense and helped make his point of equality clear. One such example of this is when he describes his teacher Dorothy Bean, “I later came to know that in Grand Rapids, she was viewed as a very liberal person who believed, among other things, that Negroes were equal.” (Wilkins). This detail helps to establish her as a guiding force to help the other students see Wilkins as an equal. Another great strength in this story was its clear organization of the events that took place. It began with an explanation of the setting, how he was treated, how the teacher treated him, and ended with him being accepted by the other students. Everything was chronologically ordered and easy to follow, which also made it a more enjoyable
When discussing the poetry of the Harlem Renaissance, due to the strength of their relationship, one must look at Blues and Jazz. Many viewed this genre as a voice for the black communities and as “the New Negro poets expressed a deep pride in being Black” (Smith, 1983, p. 37) it is easy to see how this influenced their poetry. The main theme of Blues were the troubles of life and finding an escape, and this underlying dissatisfaction was incorporated into poetry as a response to many of the injustices present. For example, a clear example of this is Langston Hughes’ Homesick Blues which uses many of the key techniques from Blues songs, such as short lines to create urgency. The poem discusses the effect of prejudices and injustices on the black communities, especially when it comes to finding a home and an identity. There is a subtle, irregular rhyme scheme from words such as “sun… done” (Ramazani, 1994, pp. 152-3) which strengthens the influence. The dull, full rhymes create a sense of dissatisfaction and boredom, as if the speaker has given up on life. Hughes similarly uses many colloquialism and phonetics, which were common in Blues songs, such as “De Railroad Bridge/ a sad song in de air” (Ramazani, 1994, pp. 152-3), which furthers racial pride and identity, present in Blues and Harlem Renaissance poetry. However, perhaps the strongest example of how the Blues genre infl...
...ng message. They manage to leave ideas and experiences of the real world to help us connect. Bob Dylan manages to express Emmet’s inferiority in his ballad because he was at the wrong place at the wrong time. Both To Kill A Mockingbird and A Raisin In The Sun demonstrate lack of power and control over one’s own life through the form of racial inequality. Tom was accused of a crime he didn't commit just because a whites voice is more powerful .Mama was endeavoring to get her family out of the rathole and the laws simply suppressed her. That’s why there have been so many civil movement for equality.
..., and the fear of a privileged white male – serve to illustrate a single truth. The end of the Civil War was not the end of slavery, and the conflict would rage on in the lives of befuddled citizens (white and black alike) struggling to make sense of a world that had been turned on its head. They would have to abandon their delusions of grandeur, discover new values, and learn new parts in order to live in harmony with each other. Gifted men such as Jean Toomer sought to use imagery and perspectivism to awaken a compassion in humanity that had long been dormant but, once stirred, had the ability to subjugate every thought of racial or gender inequality.
Ralph Ellison uses several symbols to emphasize the narrator’s attempt to escape from stereotypes and his theme of racial inequalities in his novel, Invisible Man. In particular, the symbolism of the cast-iron is one that haunts the narrator throughout the book. Ellison’s character discovers a small, cast-iron bank that implies the derogatory stereotypes of a black man in society at the time. From its “wide-mouthed, red-lipped, and very black” features, to its suggestion of a black man entertaining for trivial rewards, this ignites anger in Ellison’s narrator. The cast-iron bank represents the continuous struggle with the power of stereotypes, which is a significant theme throughout the novel.1 The bank plays a significant role in the book by aiding to the author’s message of stereotypes, the narrator’s search for an individual identity, and his languished desire for equality.