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Social importance of music in society
Social importance of music in society
The importance of music within society
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Moonshining is an important part of the daily lives of Appalachian people because it was a way to bring the people together to tell stories and make Appalachian literature happen. Moonshining has been a solid tradition in the mountains of Southern Appalachia. In his article “It’s All Legal until You Get Caught: Moonshining in the Southern Appalachians,” Jason Sumich states that moonshining “was a prime source of income for generations of mountain people. Historically, it was one of the few ways to earn cash in the subsistence-dominated mountain economy. It is the basis for many local stories and an important part of the mountain myth of individualism and resistance to outside authority. It has thrived in spite of legal and religious condemnation.” …show more content…
In today’s music, moonshine appears in a number of artists’ songs, like Bruno Mars, Bob Dylan, James Taylor, Van Morrison, John Denver, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Steve Earle, Jimmy Buffett, Akon, Jamie T, and Hank Williams, Jr. as well as Hank Williams III (Wikipedia). Famous country singer Dolly Parton sang a song called “Daddy's Moonshine Still.” American “country-roots” singer and songwriter Gillian Welch released a moonshiner's dying lament called “Tear My Stillhouse Down” (Wikipedia). Hank Williams III sang “A Moonshiner's Life,” paying respect to one man by name. Singer George Jones’ song “White Lightning” (which is also another name for moonshine) tells a story of a North Carolina moonshiner; “well in North Carolina, way back in the hills, lived my ol’ pappy and he had him a still. He brewed white lightning ‘til the sun went down. Then, he’s fill him a jog and he’d pass it around. Mighty mighty pleasin’, pappy’s corn squeezin’” (Wikipedia). Also, rapper Yelawolf is known to mention moonshine in some of his raps. Moonshine is like honor to his Alabama heritage, “he considers himself a connoisseur of Southern alcohol, including moonshine” (Wikipedia). Brad Paisley is a country singer and his tenth album is called Moonshine in the Trunk which was released in 2014. In the IIrish folk songs “The Moonshiner and The Hills of Connemara both concern moonshine. It is referred to as "mountain tay" in 'Hills'” (Wikipedia). In the bluegrass song “Rocky Top” it speaks of strangers who went out looking for a moonshine still and then never returned, “as well as locals who ‘get their corn from a jar’ because the ground is too rocky to actually grow corn” (Wikipedia). There are so much more artists who reference and sing about moonshine in their songs, making moonshine an essential part of the making of their music. More and more artists in Appalachian society, and today’s
Pierce, Peter. “Superstition In The Shadow Of The Appalachians.” Australian, The (2011): 23. Newspaper Source. Web. 19 Nov. 2013.
In the introduction, Hämäläinen introduces how Plains Indians horse culture is so often romanticized in the image of the “mounted warrior,” and how this romanticized image is frequently juxtaposed with the hardships of disease, death, and destruction brought on by the Europeans. It is also mentioned that many historians depict Plains Indians equestrianism as a typical success story, usually because such a depiction is an appealing story to use in textbooks. However, Plains Indians equestrianism is far from a basic story of success. Plains equestrianism was a double-edged sword: it both helped tribes complete their quotidian tasks more efficiently, but also gave rise to social issues, weakened the customary political system, created problems between other tribes, and was detrimental to the environment.
The concept of rumspringa is extremely controversial and has many aspects that seem troubling to outsiders. There are several different issues with the tradition of rumspringa. First of all, this time can be very dangerous to the teens. Another issue is parents not intervening in their child’s life at all, even if they are doing highly illegal and dangerous activities. Lastly, there is the worry that their actions during rumspringa will haunt them after they have jointed the Amish church and committed their lives.
Tennessee’s relationship with alcohol has a long and interesting history. From bargaining chip, to bribe, to the “root of all evil,” this fiery substance has been an ongoing issue for Tennessee voters and residents. Even today, 91 of Tennessee’s 95 counties still have some kind of liquor laws in place. The state is considering changing some of its restrictive laws, but it remains to be seen if the changes will pass with voters. For as long as the Bible Belt cinches the state, liquor laws will remain in place.
In the short story “What You Pawn I Will Redeem”, Sherman Alexie uses the two most well known stereotypes of Native Americans today, that they are alcoholics and homeless. These are more modern day stereotypes but they fall under the the main stereotype, that Native Americans are helpless and uncivilized. Alexie’s short story focuses on a character named Jackson Jackson, who happens to be both homeless and an alcoholic. Jackson is walking past a pawn shop when he notices his grandmother’s regalia that was stolen from his family fifty years ago. The owner of the pawn shop gives Jackson twenty-four hours to come up with the money for the regalia. The story takes us throughout his journey which consist mostly of Jackson buying alcohol, food, and even some lottery tickets. Jackson would acquire money through a variety of situations right after getting money he ended
In the 1940’s, top songs included Bill Monroe’s “Blue Moon of Kentucky,” “Smoke! Smoke! Smoke!” by Tex Williams, and Hank Williams’ “Lovesick Blues.”2 These songs share similarities with today’s hot country songs, such as Luke Bryan’s “Drink a Beer,” “Carolina” by Parmalee, and Cassadee Pope’s “Wasting All These Tears.”3 We find we can draw common themes over the seven decades of music, such as leisure activities, southern states, and heartbreak. Further research conducted by Kakde, Ghanekar, and Sindhu of Kavi Associates to test their text reader program was performed using Billboard’s top 20 Country songs from the years 1985 to 2010. Their findings confirmed the themes of heartbreak and country life as well as identifying others such as family, religion, and memories. In an analysis of the frequency of these themes, country life was sung about most often, followed by heartbreak and family. The states most often sung about include Texas, Alabama and Tennessee; with many other southern states maintaining multiple lyrical mentions of their own.4 This data confirms
In James Baldwin’s 1952 novel “Go Tell It On The Mountain” the characters in the novel each embark on a spiritual journey. Baldwin has dedicated a chapter to each member of the Grimes family, detailing their trails and tribulations, hopes and aspirations, as each one’s quest to get closer to God becomes a battle. I have chosen the character John because I admire the fierce struggle he endured to find his spirituality. I will examine how he’s embarked on his quest and prove that he has done it with integrity and dignity.
King, Thomas. “Let Me Entertain You. The Truth About Stories: A Native Narrative. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2005. 61-89. Print.
Throughout the 150 year history of Bigfoot many concerns have raised, the most in number have been from Native Americans. The Karok Indians tell of an “upslope person” who lurks far up in the mountains (Gaffron, 22-24). Some medicine men have told stories of “snow-walkers” that haunt the Forrest depths (Short). The creatures North American habitat covers over 125,000 square miles of forest, contained in the states of Oregon, Washington, and California, constituting a large number of Native American tribes to encounter and frighten (Gaffron, 22). This phenomenon is not just a Native American one told by medicine men, and tribe leaders, Bigfoot plays an enormous role in the ancient folklore of such civilizations as, the Russians, Greeks, and Anglo-Saxons (Brunvand). These civilizations have been around for hundreds of years, and have been telling stories of Bigfoot long before any one; they hold the true key to Bigfoot’s history.
Malpezzi, Frances M., and William M. Clements. ?Conversation.? Italian-American Folklore. Little Rock: August, 1992. 43-57.
Harte shows how the men of the camp became dedicated to taking care of Luck, and how his guardian, Stump, was serious about his well-being. Harte brings light to this in the story when he states that, “The reflections of the latter on the appearance of Roaring Camp tended to produce stricter habits of personal cleanliness. Again, Stumpy imposed a kind of quarantine upon those who aspired to the honor and privilege of holding The Luck. It was a cruel mortification to Kentuck--who, in the carelessness of a large nature and the habits of frontier life, had begun to regard all garments as a second cuticle, which, like a snake's, only sloughed off through decay--to be debarred this privilege from certain prudential reasons. Yet, such was the subtle influence of innovation that he thereafter appeared regularly every afternoon in a clean shirt and face still shining from his ablutions. Nor were moral and social sanitary laws neglected” (Harte). The men at the Roaring Camp are seemingly a band of reckless outlaws, yet they manage to teach the readers a lesson of morality. This story shows that having weakness can bring out the good in
The native American tribe the Iroquois Confederacy has an origin story for the start of folk stories. This is an interesting piece of writing in the way that it describes how stories began. It shows the high regard for the art of storytelling. This story starts off by telling the reader about a young boy who had lost his parents. There was no other family that would look after him so he raised himself the best that he could. This young boy was unhappy as the villages saw him as an outcast and wanted nothing to do with him. The young boy one day came across a canoe. Once in the canoe the boy was brought into the sky and paddled until he stopped atop a peek. The boy had made a home and at night heard a voice calling out to him. The voice demanded the boy offer him Tabaco. After the boy obeyed the voice the voice preceded to tell the young man a story. The voice then told the young boy a set of rules that he must follow if he wanted to be told stories. This continued for a while and the boy also came
Mooney, James. The Ghost-Dance Religion and the Sioux Outbreak of 1890. London: University of Nebraska Press, 1991.
The Moonstone, written in 1868 by Wilkie Collins is a mystery novel about a gem called "The Moonstone". The moonstone is somewhat a symbol of what everyone strives for, beauty and power. In the book, justice plays a huge role in terms of doing what is fair and morally right through action and attitude. Although the moonstone is overbearingly beautiful and breathtaking, like all beautiful things, it has a history "..that crime brings its own fatality with it" (Ch. IV). With such great beauty, the moonstone almost takes power and control over people, making them act out in such ways just to get their hands on it.
A Wish that you wish, will give you the motivation to conquer that wish.” “Where The Mountain Meets The Moon”, a fascinating fantasy book crossed with the Chinese folklore written by Grace Lin, is an amazing book to read. If you start, it will bring the desire to read the book, to find out what happens next. Now as a recommender, I would like to promise you that this book will not upset you. Furthermore, as you are reading, not only you will feel the curiosity of what’s going to happen in the future, but you will also gain the knowledgeable theme. Now, in every book, there is always a meaningful theme. And so right now, I take it as, you are wondering what the theme is, right? In this book, it