The Emotion Behind Music

 Narrations of slavery have reigned literature since the old historical novels, that have illustrated its horrors for centuries, to the more contemporary examples in hollywood such as Amistad and Django Unchained. We see it as a clear representation of what we were once capable of but no longer do. A story of human victory that is told again and again.
   
    In Frederick Douglass's, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, we follow the life of a boy living in a plantation and the experiences he encounters within. Violence reigns the scene as he is witness to horrible crimes committed against other slaves in the plantation. The whipping of a female slave, the continuous intimidation set forth by the master towards blacks, and the psychological warfare waged against what was thought to be the inferior mind of black slaves. One of the things that really caught my eye was the intense description of music and what it meant for them. When referring to the songs slaves chanted as running to the big house Douglass says:
       
        "They told a tale of woe which was then altogether beyond my feeble comprehension;
          they were tones loud, long, and deep; they breathed the prayer and complaint of souls
          boiling over with the bitterest anguish"(27)

    Although the songs spoke of joy and high spirits to Douglass it was clear that the feeling behind was of desperation. The meaning behind those simple words was the pure substance of what slavery was. People chanting over for they would be able to get out and see the big house. They were still captive in this haunting world but even the slightest freedoms inspired the most profound emotions.

    In music I find that similar escape. Emotion is flushed out as you relate to a songs lyrics, as the exquisite intervals mix in with an intense rhythm that is the perfect illustration of your emotions. As I've learnt while playing the guitar specific sounds are able to set an atmosphere of peace, love, melancholy, and all others. Its a medium of expression that has been around us since the paleolithic times and slavery didn't miss out in any of it. African music mixed alongside American folk songs and the stage was set for the development of new musical genres. What Douglass witnessed was the continuation of a musical ancestry that resides all over the world. That is then, how music conveys emotion. How the blues got its name and how Douglass sees the weeping souls of slavery through the lyrics of an old African American folk song.

"I am going away to the Great House Farm!
O, yea! O, yea! O!"

A Blogger's Delight

Forrest Wickman's blog or, as it should properly be called, blog post delves into the misuse of language in the world of blogging. Clearly upset, Wickman, delivers his logical argument on the preset that misusing words in the virtual world has become a commonality that has rapidly entrapped even the most famous and recognized bloggers on the web today. He highlights the idea that writing blog instead of post or any of its other alternate definitions not only confuses and troubles the reader but presents the author as a noob or a person who is ignorant to the true definition of the words that define the blogging community.

I rarely find myself as troubled and upset as Wickman with the misuse of language because truthfully, I'm constantly infringing the rules in my writing, but probably most in my speaking. This off course is no excuse, it just doesn't give me any moral grounds to judge others on their own violations. It does, though, remind me of a specific situation that has become routine in the car rides alongside my sister.

Singing along tunes is, truthfully, a very enjoyable hobby I usually practice in the car and occasionally in the shower. My memorization of song's lyrics would be categorized as average if not below average. My sister on the other hand sings along as if she wrote the lyrics word for word, not to mention she can detect even the smallest deviation from the original. Quickly she's just as annoyed and frustrated at me as Wickman is at his fellow bloggers, although I'm having just as much fun as her. Its clear then that even though Arianna Huffington misuses the word blog she enjoys writing posts just as much as Wickman and I'd go on even to say she's more successful at it. She would sound more professional if she utilized the proper word and after reading this post she probably will, but its maybe a little OCD on Wickmans part reflected by his insufferable character. Maybe its just one of his pet peeves.

I now know not to make this mistake although my emotions are still pretty mixed up on whether or not to improve my lyric memorization techniques.

It is my understanding now that this isn't a blog but rather a blog post I posted on my blog.

Slaughter House Five

Slaughter House Five
Kurt Vonnegut
Pg. 36