Lyric and Poetry

8/9/2019 Lyric and Poetry

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Unit Title:

Finding the Message: Lyrics and Poetry as Constructed Messages

Audience:

Eleventh grade students enrolled in English 11 (Media Literacy) period seven, at Concord High School, a public high school of 1,9! students in Concord, "H# $he class %eets three ti%es per &ee'one fortyfive%inute period and t&o 9*%inute bloc's#

Learning Goals:

1# Students &ill be able to deter%ine the %essage given in social+political song lyrics and poetry## $hey &ill consider ho& the racial and class identity of a poet or song&riter affects this %essage## $hey &ill be able to analy-e ho& various ele%ents of poetry &or' to convey a %essage, and &hat

ter%s identify those ele%ents using the correct poetic ter%inology#.# $hey &ill be able to convey a social+political %essage in their o&n poetry#

/ustification for Learning 0oals$hroughout the yearlong Media Literacy course, students have studied ho& various %edia &or' to informor persuade their audience. $hey have ea%ined advertising, novels, current global crises and politics#Song lyrics and poetry fit into this study, as they also are %edia through &hich an audience hears a%essage# Since %usic &ith lyrics is the %ediu% students consu%e the %ost, it is essential that they beco%econsu%ers adept at deter%ining &hat the creator of a %essage in %usic &ants the% to 'no& or do as aresult of hearing the %usic# Song lyrics and poetry both contain poetic ele%ents such as repetition, diction,allusion, irony, i%agery, sy%bolis%, alliteration, repetition and figurative language2 to co%prehend asong&riter3s or poet3s %essage and the %eaning of lines in a song or poe%, students %ust learn the%eaning of these ter%s, be able to translate their %eaning in a poe% or song and interpret ho& they &or' toconvey the %essage of the &or'# 4hen students beco%e capable of interpreting the %essage of a song or poe% and ho& &ords can &or' in a uni5ue &ay in these %edia to send a %essage, they should be ready toco%%unicate a %essage on a topic for &hich they feel passionate#

NCTE/IRA tandards6 1, , , ., 7, 8, !, , 11, and 1

Unit !"er"ie#:

:n this unit students &ill closely ea%ine song lyrics and poetry to be able to deter%ine a &riter3s %essagein these %edia genres# :nstruction &ill be focused on ho& &ords, phrases and lines in songs and poetry, as&ell as poetic ele%ents the &riter e%ploys, &or' to&ard co%%unicating the &or'3s %essage# Students &illlearn so%e basic poetic ter%inology to be able to identify these ele%ents precisely# Students also &illresearch song&riters and poets and their &or's to develop a deeper understanding of the effect of lifeeperiences on a social+political song or poe%# $hey &ill also analy-e these &or's in ter%s of %essage andlanguage and poetic ele%ents that epress it# ;nalysis and research &ill be done in s%all collaborativegroups because students can have a continuu% of interpretations of lyrics and poetry based on lifeeperiences and can learn fro% each other# $hey also &ill interpret lyrics and poetry independently#Students &ill co%plete various products by the end of the unit# $hey &ill free &rite in response to various5uestions related to a day3s ob


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audience to thin' about or do so%ething# ; short essay (one page) eplaining the passion &ill acco%panythe poetry# Students &ill present their poetry to the class at the end of the unit#

Unit Assess$ent Plan:

;ssess%ent for this unit &ill be for%al as &ell as infor%al6

In%or$al assess$ent &ill occur throughout the unit as pre and postassess%ent as the teacher circulatesduring group and independent &or' and listens to student co%%ents during discussions and other classactivities# :nfor%al assess%ent enables the teacher to gauge &here individual students and the class as a&hole is in their learning, and provides the teacher the opportunity to clarify concepts that students are notgrasping and revise lessons if needed#

For$al assess$ent &ill ta'e various for%s throughout the unit6

•=reassess%ent6

o Four %ree #riting &ro$&ts o% %i"e to ten $inutes each #

$hese &ill ta'e place in the first &ee' and a half of classes and be centered on learning goal6 >Students &ill consider ho& the racial and class identity of a poet or song&riteraffects the %essage of a poe% or song#? $he free &rites also &ill address learning goal 1,>Students &ill be able to deter%ine the %essage given in social+political song lyrics and poetry,? since students &ill be considering %essages in these %edia# $he rationalefor doing this assess%ent is 1) to get an idea of &hat students3 co%position is li'e and ) toallo& %e to see &hat and ho& their thin'ing is in relation to learning goal # $he free &rites&ill be evaluated out of a possible three points each# ; score of three points %eans studentsclearly thought about the 5uestion, and that thin'ing is evident in the ideas they share in&riting2 a score of t&o points %eans fe&er ideas &ere shared and less thin'ing is evident2 ascore of one point %eans students thought very little and &rite one rudi%entary thought#

$he pro%pts are as follo&s6

4hat do you thin' of political or social %essages given by &hite song&riters about

people &ho are not &hite, such as 4oody 0uthrie &riting about Meican %igrantfar% &or'ers@ 4hy@

4hat can the i%pact be on a song or its %essage if the &riter+perfor%er has

eperienced the song3s content rather than &itnessed or heard about it@ 4hy are %any political songs (and poe%s) &ritten about people &ho are not &hite@

o !ne &age analy'ing ho# diction( i$agery and allusion #or) in a song o% choice*

$his &ill be assigned the second &ee' of classes and &ill address learning goal ,>$hey &ill be able to analy-e ho& various ele%ents of poetry &or' to convey a %essage,

and &hat ter%s identify those ele%ents using the correct poetic ter%inology#? $his piece&ill be evaluated out of a possible ten points# : &ill be loo'ing for a student3s preli%inaryability to give several ea%ples of each poetic ele%ent (diction, i%agery and allusion),identifying the% correctly, paraphrasing &hat they %ean and ho& they are effective poeticdevices to use#


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•=ostassess%ent (Su%%ative ;ssess%ent)

o Lyric/Poetry as Message +ritten Analysis essay ,- &ages.

;s students approach the end of lyrics study in the unit, this essay &ill assess their learning inrelation to learning goals 1 and 6 >Students &ill be able to deter%ine the %essage given insocial+political song lyrics and poetry? (1) and >$hey &ill be able to analy-e ho& various ele%entsof poetry &or' to convey a %essage, and &hat ter%s identify those ele%ents using the correct

poetic ter%inology? ()# Criteria and assign%ent follo&s#


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English 11Lyrics or =oetry as Message 4ritten ;nalysis

Select a %usician or poet and one of her or his songs or poe%s# ;ns&er thefollo&ing 5uestions in essay for%at# pages# Aue in one &ee'#Be sure to include an introduction and conclusion#

* 0o# does this $usician or &oet use lyrics or &oetry to in%or$ and

&ersuade the audience1

a) $ell &hat you thin' the song3s or poe%3s %essage is# b) Eplain ho& poetic ele%ents co%%unicate the %essage6

Defer to s&eci%ic e2a$&les of i%agery, re&etition, #ord choice,%igurati"e language, etc# that &or' to&ard epressing the

%essage#

Cite &ords, phrases and lines s&eci%ically in your reflection# $heseshould appear in 5uotation %ar's#

-* 0a"e you 3een $ade $ore a#are o% an issue or situation in any #ay1

0o#1 ,0a"e you 3een in%or$ed or &ersuaded1.

Lyric/Poetry Reflection

CATEGORY 4 3 2 1

Support for Topic(Content)

Specific lines,phrases, words andpoetic elements arecited, and how theywork to communicatethe songs or poemsmessage ise!plained"

Specific lines, phrases,words or poeticelements are cited, #utthe e!planation for howthey communicate themessage is notthorough, so the reader is left guessing"

Some lines, phrasesor words are cited,#ut it is not madeclear how theycommunicate themessage$e!planation isminimal"

%o specific lines,phrases, words or poeticelements are cited" Theessay does not e!plainwhat the songs orpoems message is orhow it is communicated"

Introduction(Organiation)

The introduction isin&iting, states themain topic andpre&iews thestructure of the

paper"

The introduction clearlystates the main topicand pre&iews thestructure of the paper,#ut is not particularly

in&iting to the reader"

The introductionstates the main topic,#ut does notade'uately pre&iewthe structure of the

paper, nor is itparticularly in&iting tothe reader"

There is no clearintroduction of the maintopic or structure of thepaper"

Se!uencing(Organiation)

(etails are placed ina logical order andthe way they arepresented effecti&elykeeps the interest ofthe reader"

(etails are placed in alogical order, #ut theway in which they arepresented)introducedsometimes makes thewriting less interesting"

Some details are notin a logical ore!pected order, andthis distracts thereader"

*any details are not in alogical or e!pected order"There is little sense thatthe writing is organi+ed"

.


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o Poetry ocratic e$inar

$he Socratic se%inar for%at allo&s the teacher to assess students3 ability to %eet learninggoals 1, and # :t also is a &ay, through discussion of a poe%, through &hich students&ho do not turn in &ritten assign%ents or &ho have &ritten output difficulties can sho&their learning# Dubric follo&s#

Poetry Socratic Se"inar

CATEGORY 4 3 2 1

Infor"ation All information and'uestions presentedin the seminar wereclear, accurate andthorough"

*ost information and'uestions presentedin the seminar wereclear, accurate andthorough"

*ost informationpresented in theseminar was clearand accurate, #utwas not usuallythorough" %o'uestions wereasked"

nformation hadse&eral inaccuraciesOR was usually notclear"

#$e of%act$/Stati$tic$

E&ery ma-or pointwas well supported

with specific linesfrom the poetryand)or poet #io"

E&ery ma-or pointwas ade'uately

supported withrele&ant supportfrom the poetry and#io"

E&ery ma-or pointwas supported with

facts, #ut therele&ance of somewas 'uestiona#le"

E&ery point was notsupported"

#nder$tanding of Topic

You clearlyunderstood the topic.poetry terminology/in0depth andpresented theirinformation forcefullyand con&incingly"

You clearlyunderstood the topicin0depth andpresented theirinformation withease"

You seemed tounderstand the mainpoints of the topicand presented thosewith ease"

You did not show anade'uateunderstanding of thetopic"

Re$pect forOt&er Tea"

All statements, #odylanguage, and

responses wererespectful and werein appropriatelanguage"

Statements andresponses were

respectful and usedappropriatelanguage, #ut onceor twice #odylanguage was not"

*ost statements andresponses were

respectful and inappropriatelanguage, #ut therewas one sarcasticremark"

Statements,responses and)or

#ody language wereconsistently notrespectful"

o Final Pro4ect

$he final assess%ent of the unit &ill be the co%position of a series of three to five poe%son a topic about &hich individual students feel passionate# $hey &ill choose the topic and

find a &ay in &hich they can co%%unicate a social or political %essage about it# $hey &ill conductresearch into their topic to be able to refer to specifics in their o&n poetry and they &ill &rite one pagereflecting on ho& their passion connects to &ho they are# $his one page of prose addresses learning goal

, >Students &ill consider ho& the racial and class identity of a poet or song&riter affects a poe%3s orsong3s %essage#? $he poe%s students &rite &ill pri%arily address learning goal ., >Students &ill beable to convey a social+political %essage in their o&n poetry#? Ho&ever, this ability is dependent uponstudents %eeting learning goals 1 and >Students &ill be able to deter%ine the %essage given insocial+political song lyrics and poetry? (1) and >$hey &ill be able to analy-e ho& various ele%ents of poetry &or' to convey a %essage, and &hat ter%s identify those ele%ents using the correct poeticter%inology# Since the inal =ro


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Poetry as Constructed Message

Final Pro4ect

Consider a political or social passion of your o&n# Desearch this topic to learn infor%ation thatcould be beneficial in &riting your o&n poetry, to help you refer to specifics#

4rite a brief (onepage) reflection on your passion and ho& it connects to &ho you are (your bac'ground)#

$hen &rite a series (7) of your o&n poe%s, 'eeping in %ind the poetic ele%ents good poetse%ploy (refer to your =oetic $er%inology sheet)# :n your poe%s be sure to include allusions tospecifics on your topic (this is &here the research co%es in)#

Lyric/Poetry Unit Final Pro4ect Ru3ric

Category 5 6 - Essay:

Uni7ue

"oice

&resent

$he reader can

sense passionand understandthe personalhistory thatcontributes tothe passion#

$he reader

understands personal bac'ground, butthe passion isnot as easilynoticed#

Both

bac'ground and passion are=resent, but aretypical and+or clichF#

$he essay does

not address the passion or the personalconnection#

Poetry:

Figurati"e

language

Gse of%etaphor,si%ile and other techni5ues aresubtle and purposeful and

contribute to theoverall%essage#

$he &riter uses%etaphors andsi%iles, but their use is obviousand+or forced#

; couple of%etaphors andsi%iles are used, but they do not provide solidi%agery and

see% out of place#

"o %etaphorsor si%iles areused#

Poetry:

Relaying

o"erall

$essage

$he poe%effectively provides a%essage aboutthe &riter3s passion# :t ise%bedded and purposeful#

$he poetry has a%essage, but the%essage isobvious andforced#

"ot all of the poe%s have a%essage#

"one of the poe%s have a%essage#

o u$$ati"e or Post8assess$ent Free #rite ,9 $inutes.;t the end of the unit, students &ill free &rite on the follo&ing pro%pt6 =oetry is a type of

%edia# 4hat have you learned about the effectiveness of poetry for co%%unicating a %essage@ $his&ill enable students to assess their o&n learning and to reflect on poetry as %edia that co%%unicatesa %essage li'e all the other %edia they have studied thus far in Media Literacy# :t also &ill allo& theteacher to see &hat students recogni-e they have learned about poetry3s ability to co%%unicate a%essage#

E"aluation rea)do#n:

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$here are a possible 1* points for students to achieve in this unit6Four %ree #rites6 1 points total ( points each)!ne8&age discussing diction( i$agery and allusion in a song 6 1* points totalLyric Re%lection +ritten Analysis6 ** points totalPoetry ocratic e$inar6 .** points totalFinal Pro4ect6 ** points total

;esign %or Instruction ,&lan.

:n this unit students &ill have the opportunity to learn in various &ays6 independently (e#g# free &riting,interpreting poe%s independently in class and Socratic Se%inar preparation and in Silent Aiscussion)2 ins%all collaborative groups (&hich &ill incorporate fleible grouping for differentiated instruction to thisheterogeneous group) (e#g# ans&ering 5uestions about various songs, researching the life and lyrics of =eter$osh or Bob Marley, the diction activity and Socratic Se%inar groups)2 and in a large group (e#g# &holeclassdiscussion of songs, teacher thin'aloud poe% interpretation activity and audience contributions to SocraticSe%inar)# Learning activities in the unit allo& for %ove%ent and social interaction &hile they de%and participation of all students to allo& for assess%ent and ensure that students are %eeting learning goals# "otall assess%ent tools are &ritten assign%ents2 the teacher &ill assess learning infor%ally by circulating as

students &or', and the Socratic Se%inar allo&s students to sho& learning orally#

Lyrics and Poetry as Constructed Messages

Lesson Plan ;ay : :ntroduction to unit2 songs &ith %essages# $his class ta'es place on a >s'inny? Monday2 activity length reflects that#

Rationale:

Music plays a huge role in the lives of %ost high school students today2 they are %a


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.# Dead 5uestion and ans&er about the i%portance of radio for spreading %essages in %usic, ho& thiscould not have been done on such a large scale earlier in history, fro% >Bob Aylan and SocialConsciousness6 Critical :ssues? (fro% GC Santa Barbara)#

7# ;s' students &hat %ethods &ere used before radio to spread %essages# ;s' the% &hat %ethodsare used no List these on the board# ;s' ho& the %edia today differs fro% &hen Aylan3s careerstarted#

8# Aistribute handout >=oetic $er%inology? and revie& ter%s on it#!# =ass out Letter to a%ilies student handout# Eplain the assign%ent on itcollecting titles of

songs &ith %essages fro% an adult(s) in a fa%ily#

0o$e#or):

• Bring in titles of t&o or songs fro% adult fa%ily %e%ber(s)# Song titles due riday#

Assess$ent:

• Circulate as students respond to ;nticipation 0uide in s%all groups# Chec' to see that they are

thin'ing about %usic not only as entertain%ent but also as a %ediu% for spreading social and political (as &ell as other) %essages# Listen as students share responses to ;nticipation 0uidein large group#


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English 11Pros&ectus: Lyrics and Poetry as Constructed Messages

=oets3 $houghts on =olitical =oetry6:n this country, socalled political poetry is disparaged as poetry of rhetoric and si%ple, raging state%ent# : believe that the political underlies all epression# Ho& a poe% co%es to be %ade, &hat and ho& is spo'en,&hat language, and in &hat contet the poe% eistsall have political basis# /oy Har


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English 11Song Lyrics and =oetry as Constructed MessagesAntici&ation Guide

Music and


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ro% http6++&&teachervision#fen#co%+civilrights+lessonplan+.9#ht%l

Unit: Lyrics and Poetry as Constructed Message

Lesson Plan ;ay -: ol' Songs &ith Messages

$etual ocus6 Bob Aylan, >Blo&in3 in the 4ind,? 4oody 0uthrie, >Aeportees (=lane4rec' at Los 0atos)?

Rationale6Students should understand that a s'illful poet can say so%ething differently than &e %ight in everydayspeech# :t also is i%portant for the% to be able to interpret &hat a poet is saying in poetic language, as &ell asfind the underlying %essage or %essages in that language# By ea%ining a poet3s &ord choices and the poetic ele%ents used in a poe% or song, students can deter%ine ho& certain &ord choices &or' effectively toconvey the poet3s %essage#

;aily !34ecti"es6

• Students &ill learn that in poetry (or lyric co%position) &e can say so%ething differently than

&e &ould in everyday speech#

• $hey &ell learn that in poetry &e can %a'e certain choices of &ords and poetic ele%ents to

co%%unicate a %essage#

• :n s%all collaborative groups they &ill ea%ine a song to deter%ine ho& poetic ele%ents and

&ord choices can &or' to say so%ething differently and to co%%unicate a &riter3s %essage6&hat the &riter &ants the audience to thin' about or do as a result of the %essage#

Instructional ;esign61# Aefine >fol' %usic#?# ;s' &hat students 'no& about Bob Aylan and &hat songs they 'no& that he has &ritten# 0ive

the% brief biographical infor%ation, such aso

He &as about t&enty &hen he &rote and perfor%ed >Blo&in3 in the 4ind#?oHe has been &riting and perfor%ing %usic for nearly fifty years#

oHis earliest and %ost &idely listened to &or' is protest songs#

# Have students open to >Blo&in3 in the 4ind? in poetry pac'et#.# Dead story about this song fro% Rolling Stone online article (attached)#7# Eplain the follo&ing bac'ground infor%ation about >Blo&in3 in the 4ind (fro% above

article)6o :t &as &ritten as a poe% and then put to the %usic of an ;frican ;%erican traditional song,

>"o More ;uction Bloc'#?o :t &as &ritten in 198, &hen Aylan &as 1#

oAylan co%posed the poe% in ten %inutes#

o :t is called the %ost fa%ous protest song ever &ritten#oAylan believed hu%anity3s greatest cri%e is indifference2 he noted that >So%e of the biggest

cri%inals are those that turn their heads a&ay &hen they see &rong and they 'no& it3s&rong#?

o >Blo&in3 in the 4ind? strengthened the stance of peace de%onstrators in the 198*s anti&ar

%ove%ent#o$he song is &ritten in the interrogative for%it as's 5uestions of its audiencea co%%on

feature of fol' %usic#

11


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8# Sho& on proBlo&in3 in the 4ind?fro% &&youtube#coo%+&atch@vNcedo7*09'g#

!# Brea' students into groups of four## 4rite on the board the follo&ing tas's for groups# Students do not need to &rite for this group

activity, but they %ay if it is helpful2 a note ta'er can ta'e group notes if desired6o $ranslate or interpret into everyday language &hat each couplet %eans in the song# :f

the %eaning is straightfor&ard, you use those &ords#o $ry to articulate the song3s %essage6 &hat does Aylan &ant his audience to thin'

about or do@o Aoes Aylan ans&er any of his 5uestions@

o 4ho is the audience@ Can they find the ans&ers to these 5uestions@

o "o&, go through the song again and deter%ine &hat &ords+language and i%ages

Aylan uses to create a %essage6 ho& does he say so%ething differently than &e&ould if &e &ere spea'ing (the &ay &e >translated? it)# 4hat &ords &or' to conveya %essage@ Gnderline these &ords+language or i%ages#

9# Have groups share &ith the class their >translations#? irst, as' for interpretations of &hat>blo&in3 in the &ind? %ight %ean# Call on different groups for each couplet# :f a group has a%uch different translation, have it share it#

1*# Have groups share &ith the class &ords+language or i%ages Aylan uses to co%%unicate a%essage in a different &ay than &e %ight in everyday speech# List these on the board# Deadfro% the board and as' ho& these &or' to&ard the %essage#

11# "et, have students (still in groups) open to 4oody 0uthrie3s >Aeportee#? 0ive bac'ground of 0uthrie, eplaining ho& he &as a %a


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:n ;pril 198, at 0erdeKs ol' City in "e& Ior'Ks 0reen&ich illage, Bob Aylan gave a 5uic' speech before

playing one of his ne& songs6 $his here ainKt no protest song or anything li'e that, Kcause : donKt &rite no

protest songs, he said# He then sang the first and third verses of the still unfinished Blo&inK in the 4ind#

=ublished in full a %onth later in the fol'


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believe he sang and co%posed %usic &ith an etre%e talent held by only hi%# He &ill al&ays be loo'ed atas a po&erful leader#

ro% http6++transcriptions#english#ucsb#edu+archive+topics+infoart+dylan+issues#ht%l

Blo&in3 in the 4ind

By Bob Aylan

Ho& %any roads %ust a %an &al' do&nBefore you call hi% a %an@Ies, KnK ho& %any seas %ust a &hite dove sailBefore she sleeps in the sand@Ies, KnK ho& %any ti%es %ust the cannon balls flyBefore theyKre forever banned@$he ans&er, %y friend, is blo&inK in the &ind,$he ans&er is blo&inK in the &ind#

Ho& %any ti%es %ust a %an loo' upBefore he can see the s'y@Ies, KnK ho& %any ears %ust one %an haveBefore he can hear people cry@Ies, KnK ho& %any deaths &ill it ta'e till he 'no&s$hat too %any people have died@$he ans&er, %y friend, is blo&inK in the &ind,$he ans&er is blo&inK in the &ind#

Ho& %any years can a %ountain eistBefore itKs &ashed to the sea@

Ies, KnK ho& %any years can so%e people eistBefore theyKre allo&ed to be free@Ies, KnK ho& %any ti%es can a %an turn his head,=retending he


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>Aeportee? Bac'ground

$he agree%ent of 19.! Pbet&een Meico and the G#S#Q### contained a novel provision &hich establisheda%nesty through deportation# Gnder its ter%s, undocu%ented Meicans &ho &ere sent bac' across the border could return to the G#S# as te%porary contract laborers2 during the life of their contracts, they couldnot be again deported# :n practice, e%ployers often called Border =atrol stations to report their o&nundocu%ented e%ployees, &ho &ere returned, %o%entarily, to border cities in Meico, &here they signedlabor contracts &ith the sa%e e%ployers &ho had denounced the%# $his process beca%e 'no&n as dryingout &etbac's or stor% and drag i%%igration# Arying out provided a deportationproof source of cheapseasonal labor###

;ic) ?* Rea"is( +ithout ;ocu$ents( Ne# B( &* 6>*

?oe !%%er ,?oe8!%%er$sn*co$. &ro"ided this in%o on rec*$usic*%ol) on ?an ->( >>:

$he Ne# ( >5B reported the &rec' of a charter plane carrying Meican far%&or'ers fro% a'land to the El Centro, C;, Aeportation Center#### $he crash occurred * %iles &est ofCoalinga, !7 %iles fro% resno#

$he first version of the song that : heard &as by the +his)ey 0ill ingers bac' in the late 7*Ks or early 8*Ks#$hey &ere a shortlived group led by ;a"e Guard of the Dingston Trio###

He P4AI 0G$HD:EQ &as &riting as %any songs as ever, but fe& of any conse5uence# His childrenKssongs continued to be char%ing### and his other songs re%ained perfunctory, &ith the notable eception of=lane 4rec' at Los 0atos (Aeportees), &hich he co%posed after reading, early in 19., that a planedeporting %igrant far% &or'ers bac' to Meico had crashed# :t &as the last great song he &ould &rite, a

%e%orial to the na%eless %igrants all scattered li'e dry leaves in Los 0atos Canyon, &here the planecrashed#### $he song, as he &rote it, &as virtually &ithout %usic 4oody chanted the &ords and &asnKt perfor%ed publicly until a decade later &hen a schoolteacher na%ed Martin 0o%%$an added a beautiful%elody and Pete eeger began singing it in concerts####

?oe Dlein( +oody Guthrie: A Li%e( London( >B( &&* 65>869

17

http://www.geocities.com/nashville/3448/deportee.html?200817#martin%23martinhttp://www.geocities.com/nashville/3448/deportee.html?200817#martin%23martin


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Aeportee (=lane 4rec' ;t Los 0atos)

By 4oody 0uthrie

$he crops are all in and the peaches are rottKning,$he oranges piled in their creosote du%ps2$heyKre flying Ke% bac' to the Meican border $o pay all their %oney to &ade bac' again

0oodbye to %y /uan, goodbye, Dosalita,;dios %is a%igos, /esus y Maria2Iou &onKt have your na%es &hen you ride the big airplane,;ll they &ill call you &ill be deportees

My fatherKs o&n father, he &aded that river,$hey too' all the %oney he %ade in his life2My brothers and sisters co%e &or'ing the fruit trees,;nd they rode the truc' till they too' do&n and died#

So%e of us are illegal, and so%e are not &anted,ur &or' contractKs out and &e have to %ove on2Si hundred %iles to that Meican border,$hey chase us li'e outla&s, li'e rustlers, li'e thieves#

4e died in your hills, &e died in your deserts,4e died in your valleys and died on your plains#4e died Kneath your trees and &e died in your bushes,Both sides of the river, &e died


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Unit: Lyrics and Poetry as Constructed Messages

Lesson Plan ;ay 6: Songs Deacting to Dacist Cri%es

$etual ocus6 Billie Holiday, >Strange ruit,? Bob Aylan, >$he Ballad of E%%ett $ill?

Materials6 =ost:t paper or butcher paper affied to &all, notecards &ith 5uestions#

Rationale:

Students enrolled in a %edia literacy class should understand that the &ay artists and then their audiencesoften deal &ith and try to co%prehend tragedy is through artistic epression%edia2 often after a tragedythere is a photo, painting, &ritten &or', song, etc# for%ulated about the event that over ti%e co%es tosy%boli-e it through re%inding audiences of its occurrence# So%eti%es there are %any# $he songs studiedtoday and other &or's in this unit represent so%e of these# By ea%ining the%, students can study &herenarrators position the%selves in relation to the event, &ho the audience is and &hy the singer felt co%pelledto use the %ediu% of %usic to present a %essage about an event,

;aily !34ecti"es:

• Students &ill consider &hy %usic %ight be an effective %ediu% for co%%unicating social+political

%essages#

• $hey &ill thin' about &hy singers sing about tragic events#

• :n collaborative s%all groups they &ill deter%ine &hat poetic ele%ents and &ord choice %a'es a

%essage stronger in a song#

Instructional ;esign:

1# (;nticipatory Set) ocused free &rite (ten %inutes)6 4hat do &e thin' of political or social%essages given by &hite song&riters about people &ho are not &hite, such as 4oody 0uthrie

&riting about Meican %igrant far% &or'ers@ 4hy@ (=reassess%ent)# ;s' for volunteers to share free &rites or the ideas in the%## Collect free &rite to assess#.# Share songs fro% fa%ilies#7# Devie& poetic ter%inology fro% sheet &ith students#8# Eplain to students that today3s class &ill deal &ith difficult subStrange ruit#? Eplain that it &as &ritten by a poet (Le&is ;llen,

&ho &as not ;frican ;%erican) and later put to %usic and perfor%ed by Billie Holiday# Eplain&ho Holiday &as in ter%s of a social %essagegiver6 a &o%an singing Strange ruit? fro% &&youtube#co%+&[email protected]#

9# 0ive students infor%ation about lynching (attached), and sho& it on visuali-er#1*# ;s' students 5uestions about >Strange ruit? (attached)#11# ;s' the% &hy Holiday %ight have put the poe% >Strange ruit? to %usic and used that

%ediu% to epress her %essage# ;re other %edia %ore or less effective@ :n &hat &ays@1# 4hat i%agery in the song %a'es its %essage effectively conveyed@1# Have students open to >$he Ballad of E%%ett $ill#?

1!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4zyuULy9zshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4zyuULy9zshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4zyuULy9zshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4zyuULy9zs


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1.# Dead to students the bac'ground of the songthe description of &hat happened to E%%ett$ill#

17# =lay >$he Ballad of E%%ett $ill? video fro% &&youtube#co%+&atch@vN


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Strange ruit

=oe% by Le&is ;llen2 perfor%ed by Billie Holiday

Southern trees bear strange fruit,Blood on the leaves and blood at the root,Blac' bodies s&inging in the southern bree-e,Strange fruit hanging fro% the poplar trees#

=astoral scene of the gallant south,$he bulging eyes and the t&isted %outh,Scent of %agnolias, s&eet and fresh,

$hen the sudden s%ell of burning flesh#

Here is fruit for the cro&s to pluc',or the rain to gather, for the &ind to suc',or the sun to rot, for the trees to drop,Here is a strange and bitter crop#

19


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uestions for >Strange ruit?

o 4hy &ere %ost lynching victi%s hung fro% trees@ 4ould they have died this &ay

had they been convicted of a cri%e in a court of la&@o 4hat 'inds of fruit do trees usually bear@ ;s' students to generate the cycle a fruit

bearing tree &ould go through in the course of a season6 the tree blosso%s, the fruit begins to gro&, ripens, and falls to the ground as perhaps the &ind blo&s# n theground it %ight be eaten by cro&s, etc#

o Ho& do &e 'no& fro% the lyrics that the strange fruit here %eans the bodies of

lynching victi%s@o 4hy is it that Southern trees bear the strange fruit@

o 4hat contrast is %ade bet&een the gallant South and the South &hich bears

strange fruit@ 4hat is ironic about this contrast@o 4hy do you thin' the &ord lynching never appears in the song@

o Ao you thin' the song is %ore po&erful, or less po&erful, because its topic

PlynchingQ is i%plied instead of stated@o 4hat i%pact does a song have, and &hy@

;ctivity6 Have students generate a list of ad


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bloc'ed by Southern senators, lynchings virtually disappeared by 197*# :n part this can be attributed toi%proved econo%ic conditions and the success of the antilynching ca%paign spearheaded by the ";;C=#

ro% http6++&&teachervision#fen#co%+civilrights+lessonplan+.9#ht%lTassess%ent

$he Lynching of E%%ett $ill

(historical &eb site) http6++&&herois%#org+class+197*+heroes+till#ht%

$he horrific death of a Chicago teenager helped spar' the civil rights %ove%ent :n the su%%er of 1977,Ma%ie $ill gave in to her sonKs pleas to visit relatives in the South# But before putting her only son E%%etton bus in Chicago, she gave hi% a stern &arning6 Be careful# :f you have to get do&n on your 'nees and bo& &hen a &hite person goes past, do it &illingly# E%%ett, all of 1., didnKt heed his %otherKs &arning# n;ug# !, 1977, E%%ett &as beaten and shot to death by t&o &hite %en &ho thre& the boyKs %utilated bodyinto the $allahatchie Diver near Money, Mississippi# E%%ettKs cri%e6 tal'ing and %aybe even &histling to a&hite &o%an at a local grocery store# E%%ettKs death ca%e a year after the Supre%e CourtKs Bro&n v# Boardof Education decision outla&ed segregation# or the first ti%e, blac's had the la& on their side in the strugglefor e5uality# E%%ettKs 'illing struc' a cord across a nation# 4hite people in the "orth &ere as shoc'ed as blac's at the cruelty of the 'illing# $he national %edia pic'ed up on the story, and the case %obili-ed the ";;C=, &hich provided a safe house for &itnesses in the trial of the 'illers# E%%ett beca%e a %artyr for thefledgling civil rights %ove%ent that &ould engross the country in a fe& years# Ma%ie $ill spo'e out abouther sonKs death# She held an opencas'et funeral for her son, so that the &orld could see &hat they did to %y boy# E%%ettKs face &as battered beyond recognition and he had a bullet hole in his head# $he body haddeco%posed after spending several days under&ater# Doy Bryant, &hose &ife Carolyn &as the &hite &o%anat the store, and his half brother, /#4# Mila%, &ere tried for E%%ettKs %urder and ac5uitted by a


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$he Ballad of E%%ett $ill

By Bob Aylan

$&as do&n in Mississippi no so long ago,4hen a young boy fro% Chicago to&n stepped through a Southern door#$his boyKs dreadful tragedy : can still re%e%ber &ell,$he color of his s'in &as blac' and his na%e &as E%%ett $ill#

So%e %en they dragged hi% to a barn and there they beat hi% up#$hey said they had a reason, but : canKt re%e%ber &hat#$hey tortured hi% and did so%e evil things too evil to repeat#$here &as screa%ing sounds inside the barn, there &as laughing sounds out on the street#

$hen they rolled his body do&n a gulf a%idst a bloody red rain;nd they thre& hi% in the &aters &ide to cease his screa%ing pain#$he reason that they 'illed hi% there, and :K% sure it ainKt no lie,4as


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Lesson Plan ;ay 5: =rotest ;rtists6 =eter $osh and Bob Marley, Lives and Lyrics

0uidance counselors &ill be ta'ing students one at a ti%e throughout period seven today# Si laptops %ust be reserved fro% the Media Center for this class# $hree laptops &ill be used at a ti%e,

and three &ill be 'ept charging for use &hen the first three start losing battery po&er#

$etual ocus6 Bob Marley, >Dede%ption Song,? Bob Marley and =eter $osh, >0et Gp Stand Gp,? =eter$osh, >E5ual Dights?

Rationale:

:t is i%portant for students to understand that &riters can &rite of an event or issue fro% a re%ovedstandpoint or fro% direct eperience# Songs fro% both perspectives can have i%portant %essages# Studentscan develop a better understanding of &hy song&riters &ho &rite fro% direct eperience &rite &hat and ho&they do if they research the life of the song&riter# Students also can better understand the %essage and the poetic choices a &riter %a'es if they collaborate to analy-e ho& lyrics send a %essage# By deep analysis oflyrics, including language and poetic ele%ents, students can deter%ine ho& an effective %essage isco%%unicated through the %ediu% of %usic#

;aily !34ecti"es:

• :n s%all groups, students &ill research the bac'grounds of songs and song&riters and consider the

i%pact that bac'ground has on the song3s %essage#

• :n s%all groups they &ill analy-e song lyrics, articulating &hat a song3s %essage is and &hat poetic

ele%ents &or' to co%%unicate that %essage#

• $hey &ill use poetic ter%inology in a song3s analysis#

• $hey &ill collaborate on presentation of research and analysis of a poe% to the class#


1# Eplain that =eter $osh and Bob Marley &ere %usicians &ho &rote not about &hat had happenedin the lives of others but in reaction to poverty and in


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# ;ssign one of the three songs studied today to each group to research and analy-e# $he follo&ingtas's should ta'e about forty %inutes#

Desearchers6 ;ssign three students in each group the


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E5ual Dights

By =eter $osh

Everyone is crying out for peace yes "one is crying out for


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E5ual rights and


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Dede%ption SongBy Bob Marley

ld pirates, yes, they rob i2Sold : to the %erchant ships,Minutes after they too' iro% the botto%less pit#But %y hand &as %ade strongBy the and of the al%ighty#4e for&ard in this generation$riu%phantly#4ont you help to sing$hese songs of freedo%@ cause all : ever have6Dede%ption songs2Dede%ption songs#

E%ancipate yourselves fro% %ental slavery2 "one but ourselves can free our %inds#Have no fear for ato%ic energy,cause none of the% can stop the ti%e#Ho& long shall they 'ill our prophets,4hile &e stand aside and loo'@ oohUSo%e say its


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Aese songs of freedo%@ cause all : ever had6Dede%ption songs ;ll : ever had6Dede%ption songs6$hese songs of freedo%,Songs of freedo%#


Lesson Plan ;ay : Songs of Social Co%%entary

$etual ocus6 =ublic Ene%y, >ight the =o&er? and >Hell "o (4e ;in3t ;lright)?

Rationale:

• :n this unit it is crucial for students to understand &hy so %uch %usic (and poetry) &ith

social+political %essages is not about &hite people2 often it is not co%posed by &hite peopleeither# :t is a valuable for students to analy-e the different %essages by non&hite %usicians, as&ell as deter%ine &ho the audience is#

;aily !34ecti"es:

• Students &ill consider &hy %any songs &ith social+political %essages are often about people &ho

are not &hite#

• :n s%all groups they &ill co%pare social+political %essages in songs by artists in t&o

different %usical genres (rap and reggae), and consider &ho the audiences are#

• :n s%all groups they &ill conte%plate the role of other current %usic %edia at spreading

%essages#

• $hey &ill understand the %eaning of >diction? and be able to discern effective or strong dictionfro% ineffective or &ea' diction#


1# (;nticipatory Set) ree &rite (five %inutes)6 4hy are %any political songs (and poe%s) &rittenabout people &ho are not &hite@

# ;s' students to share responses &ith the class## Collect free &rite.# J4L chart6 using three pieces =ost:t paper on the &all, dra& a title at the top of each paper# n

the first &rite the letter J (for >'no&?&hat &e already 'no&), and list the &ords >Elvis,? >/ohn4ayne,? Martin Luther Jing,? >Malcol% W,? >Blac' =anthers,? >/ac'ie Dobinson,? >Broo'lyn,?

>=hiladelphia,? and >Aetroit#? n the net sheet of paper under 4 (for &hat students &ant to'no&or 4+= for &hat they &ant to 'no& or can predict) &rite the sa%e list# n the third pieceof paper &rite L# $his is filled out after &atching the Iou$ube video#

7# Have students open to =ublic Ene%y3s >ight the =o&er#?8# =lay video recording of this song fro% Iou$ube at &&youtube#co%+&atch@vNCu$i9G-t=b

irst play only the audio recording and as' student to read the lyrics2 then have the% only &atchthe video and not read the lyrics#

!# ;s' &ho the intended audience is of the song#

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuTi9UztPbwhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuTi9UztPbw


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# Brea' students into s%all groups# Have the% analy-e &hat the rappers are saying line by line, find&hat the song3s %essage is, and underline &here they see poetic ele%ents fro% their =oetic$er%inology handout#

9# ;s' groups to share their findings#1*# Aiscuss the si%ilarities and differences bet&een this rap and the reggae songs2 are the %essages

si%ilar@ Ho& do they vary@11# Have students open to =ublic Ene%y3s **! >Hell "o (4e ;in3t ;lright),? and play audio

recording of it#1# ;s' students &hat direct co%parisons they see bet&een this rap and so%e of the reggae songs#1# ;ctivity6 learning about effective diction#

Stic' four pieces of =ost:t paper on the &alls# Ara& a line do&n the %iddle of each, using adifferent color %ar'er on each paper to &rite &ith# ;t the top of the left colu%n &rite, >Strong oreffective diction#? ;t the top of the right colu%n &rite, >e%otions these &ords evo'e#? :nstructstudents (in groups of si) to thin' of as %any specific &ays to describe the color of the &ritingon their paper as possible in the left colu%n, e#g# >grass green,? >ca%ouflage green#? $hen, in theright colu%n, across fro% each color, they should &rite the e%otions these &ords evo'e, e#g#>bright green? for grass2 >dar'er green? for ca%ouflage# $he purpose of the activity is for studentsto see ho& using less vague and %ore specific, stronger diction can evo'e certain e%otions orideas in our %inds# Leave the paper on the &alls throughout the unit to help students re%e%ber

&hat strong or effective diction is#

0o$e#or):

• ;naly-e in one page the lyrics of a song of your choice in ter%s of i%agery, diction and

allusion# Aue net class#

Assess$ent:

• Circulate as students &or' in groups and participate in diction activity# (unctional

assess%ent)

• ;ssess student free &rites out of a possible three points# (=reassess%ent)

9


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ight $he =o&erBy J# Shoc'lee, E# Sadler, C# Didenhour

199 the nu%ber another su%%er (get do&n)Sound of the fun'y dru%%er

Music hittinK your heart cause : 'no& you got soul(Brothers and sisters, hey)Listen if youKre %issinK yKallS&inginK &hile :K% singinK0ivinK &hatcha gettinKJno&inK &hat : 'no&4hile the Blac' bands s&eatinK;nd the rhyth% rhy%es rollinK0ot to give us &hat &e &ant0otta give us &hat &e needur freedo% of speech is freedo% or death4e got to fight the po&ers that be

Le%%e hear you sayight the po&er CHDGS;s the rhyth% designed to bounce4hat counts is that the rhy%esAesigned to fill your %ind "o& that youKve reali-ed the prides arrived4e got to pu%p the stuff to %a'e us toughfro% the heart:tKs a start, a &or' of art$o revolutioni-e %a'e a change nothinKs strange=eople, people &e are the sa%e

"o &eKre not the sa%eCause &e donKt 'no& the ga%e4hat &e need is a&areness, &e canKt get carelessIou say &hat is this@My beloved lets get do&n to businessMental self defensive fitness(Io) bu% rush the sho&Iou gotta go for &hat you 'no&Ma'e everybody see, in order to fight the po&ers that beLe%%e hear you say###ight the =o&er

*


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CHDGSElvis &as a hero to %ostBut he never %eant shit to %e you seeStraight up racist that suc'er &asSi%ple and plainMother fXU hi% and /ohn 4ayneCause :K% Blac' and :K% proud:K% ready and hyped plus :K% a%ped

Most of %y heroes donKt appear on no sta%psSa%ple a loo' bac' you loo' and find "othing but rednec's for .** years if you chec' AonKt &orry be happy4as a nu%ber one


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Hell na&U Aa%n, da%nU

PChuc' AQ [ (lavor lav) "o& the% fires, earth5ua'es, tsuna%is, : donKt %ean to scare### &asnKt this &ritten so%e&here@Aisgrace is all : be seein is hurtin blac' facesMoved out to all the% far a&ay places(E%ergency) state, corpses alligators and sna'es

Big difference bet&een this ha-e and (the little dia%onds on the M;Ks)Iou better loo' &hatKs really i%portantIKall under the sun, especially if you over 1$his ainKt no $ sho&, ainKt no video (this is really realU)Beyond the% sa%e olK 'eep it real5uotes fro% the% $ stars, drivin big ri% cars (streets 'eep floodin B) "o %atter &here you at no gas, driving is a luury (urgency)AonKt yKall 'no&@ $hey said itKs a state of e%ergencySho& so%ebodyKs govern%ent is far fro% reality(;iyyo chec' one t&oU)

PChorus 1Q repeat .W instead of W

P$ broadcast sa%plesQ;nd they donKt have a CLGE of &hatKs going on do&n there:K% li'e youKve gotta be 'idding %e, this is a ";$:";L disaster:tKs a&ful do&n here %an0od is loo'in do&n on all this;nd if they are not doin everything in their po&er to save people$hey are gonna pay the price

PChuc' AQ [ (lavor lav) "o& : see &e be the ne& faces of refugees, &ho ainKt even overseasBut stuc' here on our 'neesorget the plas%a $, ainKt no electricity "e& &orldKs upside do&n and G$ of orderShelter, food, &hatKs up yo@ (4hereKs the &ater@) "o ans&ers fro% disaster, the% %asses be hurtinSo &ho the fT\U they call H;LL:BGD$"@USon of a Bush ho& you gonna


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$hatKs right, &hat 0od giveth so%eti%es your country ta'eth a&ayIeah, one love, co%in fro% =ublic Ene%y, T1 yKall=ublic Ene%y, **8 (yeah)=ublic Ene%y **!, all gettin together no&

Plavor lavQLet %e tell yKall so%ethin;ll of our hearts is out there &ith yKall, you 'no& &hat :K% sayin@

;nd &e sendin truc's, &e sendin boatsBoes of## cans of soup and everythingClothes and all of that, shoes4e donating everything to yKall, you 'no& &hat :K% sayin@AonKt &orry, yKall ainKt by yourselfIou need to 'no& that


Lesson Plan ;ay @: Messages fro% Song&riters $o $hose 4ho Start 4ars

$etual ocus6 Aylan, >Masters of 4ar? and =in', >Aear Mr# =resident#?

Rationale:Songs protesting &ar &ere co%%on in the 198*s!*s, and are still present today, though they are not ado%inant song genre# Students should consider if lyrics &ritten forty years earlier are still relevant today (arelyrics ti%eless) and the co%parison bet&een earlier lyrics and current ones about the current &ar# :t also isi%portant for students to understand the %essage of t&o different songs protesting &ar and those &ho startthe%, as &ell as &hat language and poetic ele%ents help to co%%unicate the protest %essage#

;aily !34ecti"es:

• Students &ill deter%ine &hat lyrics are %ost effective in conveying a song3s %essage#

• $hey &ill free &rite on ho& language epresses the %essage#

• $hey &ill consider the i%portance of the %usic in a song#

• $hey &ill co%pare and contrast anti&ar %essages in lyrics fro% an earlier era and today#


1# (;nticipatory Set) Have students ta'e turns &riting on the board t&o phrases or lines fro%>Masters of 4ar? that of all their five choices (fro% the ho%e&or') best convey Aylan3s%essage in the song#

# Have the% choose one line or phrase fro% the board and &rite for five %inutes on ho& thislanguage &or's to epress Aylan3s %essage#

# ;s' for volunteers to share their free &rites&hat is or are Aylan3s %essage(s)@.# ;s' students &ho Aylan is addressing and &ho his audience is#

7# Dead highlights fro% ew Republic article (attached)# ;s' students &hat they %a'e of the ew Republic &riter3s criticis% of the poor 5uality of %usic of today3s protest songs, and the effectof this on creating an effective %essage#

8# :ntroduce and play =in'3s >Aear Mr# =resident? (**!) perfor%ance fro%&&youtube#co%+&[email protected]"HSDD' #

!# Have students brea' into assigned groups# 4rite the follo&ing tas's on the board## ;s' groups to list ho& the the%e of indifference in this song relates to the the%e of indifference

in >Blo&in3 in the 4ind#?9# Have groups find specific co%parisons and differences bet&een >Masters of 4ar? and >Aear Mr#

=resident#? Have the% atte%pt to ans&er &hat =in'3s overall %essage is and &hat Aylan3s is#

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v4eREpNHSRRkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v4eREpNHSRRk


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1*# Have groups decide if Aylan3s %essage(s) in >Masters of 4ar? is (are) still applicable today,fortyfive years later# Eplain that younger %usicians are still covering the song today, such asEddie edder in the 199*s and again in **. (&hen he changed >Iou hide in your %ansion? to>Iou hide in a &hite %ansion?)#

11# Have each student in group choose &ords and+or lines fro% the song to bac' up their vie&s#$hen have the% underline the &ords+lines that they feel sho& this and be prepared to eplain&hy#

1# Have each student in group circle &ords+phrases+lines in both songs that &or' to&ard conveyingthe anti&ar %essage#

1# Dead the songs on the visuali-er, having groups share their responses# Call on studentsindividually in groups# Gnderline or circle &hat they have on the pro4e Deal Cool,? Hughes3s >$he "egro Mother? and ;ngelou3s

>Still : Dise? and find three %etaphors and three si%iles in ;LL (not each) of the poe%s#

Assess$ent:

• Dead &ords+phrases+lines fro% >Masters of 4ar? that students &rite on the board#

• ;ssess free &rite responses out of a possible three points# (=reassess%ent)

• Circulate as groups respond to 5uestions# (unctional assess%ent)

• ;ssess onepage assign%ent out of a possible ten points# (unctional assess%ent)

Devolution Doc'@6 $he Degrettable Aecline of the =rotest Song

$he first ti%e : played Bruce SpringsteenKs ne& albu%, /agic, one of its songs stayed &ith %e for hours

after&ard# "o big ne&s there2 especially &hen he reunites &ith the E Street Band, Springsteen al&ays plugs bac' into anthe%ic %ode# 4hat &as surprising this ti%e &as that it &as the discKs %ost eplicit anti&arnu%ber# ;rriving near the recordKs end, Last to Aie is driven by %ournfulpageantry violins and a bustling,nearly desperate intensity that recalls SpringsteenKs earlier, K!*s &or'# ro% the opening line4e too' thehigh&ay till the road &ent blac'it places listeners in the %ind of an ;%erican soldier in :ra5 going abouthis


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4hich %eans the protest song has arrived at an odd place6 %ore necessary than ever, and %ore %arginal, too#

: &as re%inded of this situation last %onth, &hen : too' part in a panel discussion on &ar and popular cultureat the "e& /ersey ietna% eteransK Me%orial co%ple# $o prep for a tal' on the &ay pop %usic has (orhasnKt) influenced public opinion on &ar, : listened again to the ietna%era standards6 =hil chsK : ;inKtMarchingK ;ny%ore, Marvin 0ayeKs 4hatKs 0oing n, Ed&in StarrKs 4aryou 'no& the list# : &asstruc' by the &ay the songs gre& angrier and %ore heated by the year# $he gentle antiviolence senti%ents of SeegerKs 4here Have ;ll the lo&ers 0one@ fro% 1981 gave &ay by decadeKs end to far angrier %issives

li'e Creedence Clear&ater DevivalKs scathing ortunate Son# $he transition is si%ilar to &hat &eKre seeingno =aul McCartneyKs %ied%essage, postSepte%ber 11 reedo% (: &ill fight for the right+$o live infreedo%, it declared, over a lac'luster, nurseryrhy%e %elody that telegraphed its a%bivalence) has beenreplaced by the rattled, angry li'es of Bright EyesK 4hen the =resident $al's to 0od#

But so%ething else about the old hits struc' %e as &ell6 ho& %usically strapping and vibrant they still &ere#ro% all of the above to the $e%ptationsK Ball of Confusion and even a ho'ey bit of cashin apocalypto li'eBarry Mc0uireKs Eve of Aestruction, the songs stayed &ith you in every &ay# :t &as protest as pop, atradition that continued into the K*s &ith "enaKs antinu'e 99 Luftballons and Little Steven and co%panyKsrabblerousing, roc'torap Sun City#

;lthough the current batch %eans &ell, it also includes so%e of the &orst songstopical or other&iseof thelast decade# $he Beastie Boys openly 5uestion the lin' bet&een &arfare and corporations in :n a 4orld0one Mad, but the sludgy trac' is borderline unlistenable# 0reen AayKs cover of Life Auring 4arti%e has&onderfully sarcastic lyrics about the absence of national sacrifice (Aoing so%ething+4eKre %a'ingchanges+Li'e changing the brand of crap &e buy), but a %elody youKll forget the %inute the song ends# $heDolling StonesK S&eet "eo Con &as %ore a publicity stunt than a good song2 =earl /a%Ks 4orld 4ideSuicide &as another ea%ple of the bandKs largely shapeless bluster2 and =in'Ks Aear Mr# =resident &asthe first and hopefully last ti%e &eKll hear Bush bashing done &ith a fol'sy, adult conte%porary t&ist#

$he near%isses are even %ore easperating# E%ine%Ks Mosh had brilliant i%agery and at%osphereit feltli'e a %arch right into the end of the &orld, and his line about a %osh pits outside the val ffice &as

terrificbut three years on, : had to play the song again to re%ind %yself ho& it sounded# (4arning6 eplicitlanguage)

Bright EyesK 4hen the =resident $al's to 0od is a selfconscious atte%pt to follo& in AylanKs, chsK, and4oody 0uthrieKs footsteps, yet li'e too %uch of Conor berstKs &or', itKs labored and strained# Country%usic has &eighed in &ith so%e decent entriesAarryl 4orleyKs : /ust Ca%e Bac' fro% a 4ar and $i%Mc0ra&Ks :f IouKre Deading $his co%e to %indbut since the genre is %ore of a storytellerKs %ediu%, itdoesnKt do societal rage as &ell as it does personal heartbrea' (in these cases, tales of soldiers &hoKve died orreturned in a faithshattered ha-e)#

$he closest thing &eKve had to a topical pop hit in the last fe& years, i%probably, has been the Blac' Eyed=easK 4here :s the Love@, &hich paired a singsongy, literap chorus &ith rhy%es that dared to e5uate theC:; &ith terrorists# Even if the song &asnKt that teed offit &as %ostly a laundry list of generali-ed societalills and didnKt even have anything approaching E%ine%Ks 5uic'cut ta'e on ;%ericaKs role in e%boldeningBin Laden in the K9*sthe %ere fact that it %ade the pop charts at all &as re%ar'able#

4hy havenKt any of the others


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accept the notion that only the converted &ill hear (and li'e) these songs, a thought that never see%ed to haveoccurred to =ete Seeger and Lee Hayes &hen they &rote :f : Had a Ha%%er, or to =eter $osh and BobMarley &hen they &or'ed up 0et Gp Stand Gp#

4hatever the reason, %odern roc'ers see% to have forgotten that protest songs shouldnKt be the e5uivalent ofho%e&or', and that the %essage goes do&n a lot easier &hen the song is as po&erful as the protest# ;sanother oldti%er, Aic' Clar', %ight have put it6 :t helps if it has a beat, and you can de%onstrate to it#

Da&id Browne is the author of Area% Brother6 $he Lives ] Music of /eff ] $i% Buc'ley. $is biography ofSonic 0outh% 0oodbye *th Century % will be published net spring.

By Aavid Bro&ne, $he "e& Depublic =ublished6 $hursday, "ove%ber 17, **!

English 11Lyrics or Poetry as Message +ritten Analysis

Select a %usician or poet and one of her or his songs or poe%s# ;ns&er thefollo&ing 5uestions in essay for%at# pages#Be sure to include an introduction and conclusion#

* 0o# does this $usician or &oet use lyrics or &oetry to in%or$ and

&ersuade the audience1

a) $ell &hat you thin' the song3s or poe%3s %essage is#

b) Eplain ho& poetic ele%ents co%%unicate the %essage6

Defer to s&eci%ic e2a$&les of i%agery, re&etition, diction %igurati"e language, etc# that &or' to&ard epressing the %essage#

Cite &ords, phrases and lines s&eci%ically in your reflection# $heseshould appear in 5uotation %ar's#

-* 0a"e you 3een $ade $ore a#are o% an issue or situation in any #ay1

0o#1 ,0a"e you 3een in%or$ed or &ersuaded1.

Lyric/Poetry Reflection

CATEGORY 4 3 2 1

8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UKvpONl3Nohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsVkV3AZqqIhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UKvpONl3Nohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsVkV3AZqqI


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Support for Topic(Content)

Specific lines,phrases, words andpoetic elements arecited, and how theywork to communicatethe songs or poemsmessage ise!plained"

Specific lines, phrases,words or poeticelements are cited, #utthe e!planation for howthey communicate themessage is notthorough, so the reader is left guessing"

Some lines, phrasesor words are cited,#ut it is not madeclear how theycommunicate themessage$e!planation isminimal"

%o specific lines,phrases, words or poeticelements are cited" Theessay does not e!plainwhat the songs orpoems message is orhow it is communicated"

Introduction

(Organiation)

The introduction is

in&iting, states themain topic andpre&iews thestructure of thepaper"

The introduction clearly

states the main topicand pre&iews thestructure of the paper,#ut is not particularlyin&iting to the reader"

The introduction

states the main topic,#ut does notade'uately pre&iewthe structure of thepaper, nor is itparticularly in&iting tothe reader"

There is no clear

introduction of the maintopic or structure of thepaper"

Se!uencing(Organiation)

(etails are placed ina logical order andthe way they arepresented effecti&elykeeps the interest ofthe reader"

(etails are placed in alogical order, #ut theway in which they arepresented)introducedsometimes makes thewriting less interesting"

Some details are notin a logical ore!pected order, andthis distracts thereader"

*any details are not in alogical or e!pected order"There is little sense thatthe writing is organi+ed"

Masters of 4ar

By Bob Aylan

Co%e you %asters of &ar Iou that build all the gunsIou that build the death planesIou that build the big bo%bsIou that hide behind &allsIou that hide behind des's

:


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Iou fasten the triggersor the others to fire$hen you set bac' and &atch4hen the death count gets higher Iou hide in your %ansion;s young peopleKs bloodlo&s out of their bodies;nd is buried in the %ud

IouKve thro&n the &orst fear $hat can ever be hurledear to bring children:nto the &orldor threatening %y babyGnborn and unna%edIou ainKt &orth the blood$hat runs in your veins

Ho& %uch do : 'no&

$o tal' out of turnIou %ight say that :K% youngIou %ight say :K% unlearnedBut thereKs one thing : 'no&$hough :K% younger than youEven /esus &ould never orgive &hat you do

Let %e as' you one 5uestion:s your %oney that good4ill it buy you forgiveness

Ao you thin' that it could: thin' you &ill find4hen your death ta'es its toll;ll the %oney you %ade4ill never buy bac' your soul

;nd : hope that you die;nd your deathKll co%e soon: &ill follo& your cas'et:n the pale afternoon;nd :Kll &atch &hile youKre lo&ered

Ao&n to your deathbed;nd :Kll stand oKer your graveK$il :K% sure that youKre dead

Copyright R 1982 rene&ed 1991 Special Dider Music


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Aear Mr# =resident

By =in' (featuring :ndigo 0irls)

Aear Mr# =resident,Co%e ta'e a &al' &ith %e#LetKs pretend &eKre


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Lesson Plan ;ay : Deading =oetry6 Silent Aiscussion to :nteract &ith =oetry

$etual ocus6 0&endolyn Broo's, >4e Deal Cool?2 Hughes, >$he "egro Mother? and ;ngelou, >Still: Dise#?

Rationale:

4riting about poetry can help students thin' and reflect %ore deeply on it# 4hen students are as'ed specific5uestions about a poe% for a silent discussion and respond to the% in &riting, they can start delving deeperinto specific parts of the poe%# 4hen they read responses of others to the sa%e 5uestion they ans&ered andhave to respond to those, they are able to do even %ore thin'ing# Sharing student &ritten responses at theend of such an eercise can get the &hole class thin'ing on a deeper level about poetry#

;aily !34ecti"es:

• Students &ill respond in &riting to specific 5uestions about poetry#

• $hey &ill read and respond to class%ates3 responses to poetry#

• $hey &ill discuss poetry in ter%s of figurative language and based on specific 5uestions

about it#

• $hey &ill co%pose found poe%s that capture the tone and %essage of the original poe%


1# Before class, &rite the follo&ing 5uestions on =ost:t paper, one 5uestion per piece of paper# Stic' paper to &alls around roo%#

# ive%inute focused free &rite6 4hat is the %essage of >4e Deal Cool@?# Dead >4e Deal Cool? and have volunteers share ideas fro% free &rites#.# Sho& favoritepoe%#org video of >4e Deal Cool#?7# 0ive students brief bac'ground infor%ation on Langston Hughes and the Harle%

Denaissance#8# Dead >$he "egro Mother#? Have students share the %etaphors+si%iles they found in th

poe%#!# Dead >Still : Dise#? ;gain, as' students to share the %etaphors+si%iles they found in th

poe%## ;s' &hat co%parisons students can %a'e bet&een these poe%s and other songs &e ha

studied (>ight the =o&er,? >E5ual Dights? and >Dede%ption Song?)#9# ;ctivity6 Silent Aiscussion:n advance, &rite the follo& 5uestions, each on their o&n piece of =ost:t paper, and stic' the paperaround the roo% on the &alls# $he 5uestions vary in co%pleity to provide differentiated instruction2 allstudents should be able to respond to t&o 5uestions#

o Ho& %ight the narrator of >Still : Dise? and >$he "egro Mother? respond to the spea'er of

>4e Deal Cool#?o Connect ;ngelou3s %essage in >Still : Dise? to other %edia %essages you have heard#

$hin' about ones you have heard in this unit# Gse specific lines+phrases in >Still : Dise? to%a'e your connections#

o $ranslate into your everyday language the poe% >4e Deal Cool#?

o :n >$he "egro Mother,? &hat does Langston Hughes %ean in the line >But : had to 'eep on

till %y &or' &as done@? 4hat is the &or'@ Ho& &ill the spea'er 'no& &hen her &or' isdone@ Cite lines+&ords fro% the poe%#

o Co%pare the %essages of >Still : Dise? and >$he "egro Mother#?

.*


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1*# Have students travel silently around roo% &ith a pen, choosing three or four5uestions to respond to on the =ost:t paper# ;fter students have responded to the 5uestions, havethe% return to the%, read other responses to the 5uestions, and respond in &riting to t&o to threeof these responses# ;llo& ten %inutes for first responses, then five to ten %inutes for secondresponses# Have the% &rite their na%es after each of their responses#

11# 0o to each paper on the &all and read aloud or choose students to read aloud the5uestions and all student responses to the%# Aiscuss each 5uestion separately#

1# :f there is ti%e, eplain found poe%s and read an ea%ple for one of the poe%s studied today#Have students co%pose a found poe% fro% the lines+phrases+&ords of one of the poe%s studiedtoday# Have volunteers share these and discuss ho& each captures different aspects of the tone,%essage, etc# of the original poe%#

0o$e#or):

• inish Lyric or =oetry ;nalysis 4ritten Deflection# Aue net class#

Assess$ent:

• Circulate as students respond in &riting to poetry#

• Listen as they

o share %etaphors and si%iles they found in the poe%so %a'e co%parisons bet&een these poe%s and earlier songs studied

o discuss their responses to 5uestions posed on =ost:t paper

o share their found poe%s

(unctional assess%ent)

.1


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$he "egro Mother

By Langston Hughes, 19*198!

Children, : co%e bac' today$o tell you a story of the long dar' &ay$hat : had to cli%b, that : had to 'no&:n order that the race %ight live and groLoo' at %y face dar' as the night Iet shining li'e the sun &ith loveKs true light#: a% the dar' girl &ho crossed the red seaCarrying in %y body the seed of the free#: a% the &o%an &ho &or'ed in the field

Bringing the cotton and the corn to yield#: a% the one &ho labored as a slave,Beaten and %istreated for the &or' that : gave Children sold a&ay fro% %e, :K% husband sold, too# "o safety , no love, no respect &as : due#

$hree hundred years in the deepest South6But 0od put a song and a prayer in %y %outh #0od put a drea% li'e steel in %y soul# "o&, through %y children, :K% reaching the goal#

"o&, through %y children, young and free,

: reali-ed the blessing deed to %e#: couldnKt read then# : couldnKt &rite#: had nothing, bac' there in the night#So%eti%es, the valley &as filled &ith tears,But : 'ept trudging on through the lonely years#So%eti%es, the road &as hot &ith the sun,But : had to 'eep on till %y &or' &as done6: had to 'eep onU "o stopping for %e : &as the seed of the co%ing ree#: nourished the drea% that nothing could s%otherAeep in %y breast the "egro %other#: had only hope then , but no& through you,

Aar' ones of today, %y drea%s %ust co%e true6;ll you dar' children in the &orld out there,De%e%ber %y s&eat, %y pain, %y despair#De%e%ber %y years, heavy &ith sorro& ;nd %a'e of those years a torch for to%orroMa'e of %y pass a road to the lightut of the dar'ness, the ignorance, the night#Lift high %y banner out of the dust#Stand li'e free %en supporting %y trust#Believe in the right, let none push you bac'#De%e%ber the &hip and the slaverKs trac'#

.


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De%e%ber ho& the strong in struggle and strifeStill bar you the &ay, and deny you life But %arch ever for&ard, brea'ing do&n bars#Loo' ever up&ard at the sun and the stars#h, %y dar' children, %ay %y drea%s and %y prayers:%pel you forever up the great stairs or : &ill be &ith you till no &hite brotherAares 'eep do&n the children of the "egro Mother# P191Q

4e Deal CoolBy 0&endolyn Broo's, an ;frican ;%erican poet, 191!***

4e real cool# 4eLeft school# 4e

Lur' late# 4eStri'e straight# 4e

Sing sin# 4e

$hin gin# 4e

/a-- /une# 4eAie soon# P198*Q

ro% The Bean 1aters by 0&endolyn Broo's, published by Harpers# R 198* by 0&endolyn Broo's# Gsed&ith per%ission# ;ll rights reserved#

Still : Dise

By Maya ;ngelou

Iou %ay &rite %e do&n in history4ith your bitter, t&isted lies,Iou %ay trod %e inthe very dirtBut still, li'e dust, :Kll rise#

Aoes %y sassiness upset you@4hy are you beset &ith gloo%@KCause : &al' li'e :Kvegot oil &ells=u%ping in %y living roo%#

/ust li'e %oons and li'e suns,4ith the certainty of tides,/ust li'e hopes springinghigh,Still :Kll rise#

Aid you &ant to see %e bro'en@Bo&ed head and lo&ered eyes@Shoulders fallingdo&n li'e teardrops,4ea'ened by %y soulful cries#

Aoes %y haughtiness offend you@AonKt you ta'e it a&ful hardKCause : laugh li'e : gotgold %inesAigginK in %y o&n bac' yard#

.


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Iou %ay shoot %e &ith your &ords,Iou %ay cut %e &ith your eyes,Iou %ay 'ill %e&ith your hatefulness,But still, li'e air, :Kll rise#

Aoes %y seiness upset you@Aoes it co%e as a surprise$hat : dance li'e :Kve gotdia%onds;t the %eeting of %y thighs@

ut of the huts of historyKs sha%e: riseGp fro% a past thatKs rooted in pain: rise:K% a

blac' ocean, leaping and &ide,4elling and s&elling : bear in the tide#

Leaving behind nights of terror and fear : rise

:nto a daybrea' thatKs &ondrously clear : rise

Bringing the gifts %y ancestors gave,: a% the drea% and the hope of the slave#

: rise: rise

: rise#

Still : Disefro% ;"A S$:LL : D:SE by Maya ;ngelou,

copyright R 19! by Maya ;ngelou#Gsed by per%ission of Dando% House, :nc#

..

http://www.randomhouse.com/http://www.randomhouse.com/http://www.randomhouse.com/http://www.randomhouse.com/


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Unit: Lyrics and Poetry as Constructed MessagesLesson Plan ;ay B: =reparation for Socratic Se%inar on =oetry

Deserve four or %ore laptops for this class fro% the Media Center

$etual ocus6 "ao%i Shihab "ye, >Blood? and >Ma'ing a ist?2 Martin Espada,>;laban-a6 :n =raise of Local 1**?2 and Iusef Jo%unya'aa, >Believing in :ron?

Rationale:

By deep analysis of poetry, including language and poetic ele%ents, students can deter%ine ho& aneffective %essage is co%%unicated through the %ediu% of poetry# $hrough research on a poet3s lifestudents can develop so%e understanding of &hy she or he has created a particular %essage# :n preparing

for a presentation and the presentation itself, students are able to synthesi-e the infor%ation they haveaccrued to teach their peers about poets and their &or'# ; Socratic Se%inar provides an opportunity forstudents &ho do not perfor% inclass &or' or co%plete ho%e&or' assign%ents to sho& they understandthe %aterial# ;lso, the learning of students for &ho% &riting is a challenge can be assessed &hen theydiscuss a tet in depth#

;aily !34ecti"es:

• ollo&ing the teacher3s %odel, students &ill &or' independently to interpret poetry an

analy-eho& a %essage is epressed in this %ediu%#

• $hey &ill prepare for a Socratic Se%inar#

• Students &ill research a poet3s life on the internet#


1# :n this class, students &ill prepare to present their group3s poe% in a Socratic Se%inar## Students &ill &or' independently to interpret a poe% and find its %essage## Before that preparation can occur, the teacher can %odel the process of ho& she goes about reading

and understanding a poe%, and teach students through this %odel, &hat strategiesthey can use6

Aisplay "ao%i Shihab "ye3s >Ma'ing a ist? on the visuali-er# $his is the poe% the teacher &ill%odel# $his %odeling should happen as the teacher >thin's aloud#?

Dead through the poe% once out loud# "o& e%phasi-e ho& you usually need to read a&hole poe% t&o to three ti%es before you even start loo'ing for %eaning in it2 the &hole poe% has a %essage, so you3ll read the &hole thing &ithout stopping to analy-e, to fa%iliari-e yourself &ith the poe%# :f you stop to analy-e or &onder about the %eaning of &ordsyou lose the rhyth% of the poe%#

Dead the title and first stan-a, &riting everything that goes through your %ind as you read#or ea%ple, dra& a fist &hen you read the title# $ell students you are "isuali'ing this partof the poe%# 4rite ?isuali-e? on the board under the heading >Strategies#? "et, note theyou sense in this stan-a a feeling of unhappiness or disco%fort# 4rite >Aeter%ine %ood?

.7


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under >isuali-e#? Eplain that no& that you 'no& the %ood the i%ages fit in better#E%phasi-e that no& you &ill read the poe% again#

"o& &ara&hrase and %odel on the board a paraphrase of the first stan-a# 4rite>=araphrase? and describe that that %eans putting the poe%3s language in your o&n &ords# 4rite>=araphrase? under >Aeter%ine %ood#? ;s' students to paraphrase the net stan-a#4rite one student3s paraphrase on the board# $hen as' the% to provide the i%ages they visuali-e

the stan-a, and &hat %ood they sense#;s' students &hat stands out to the% in the third stan-a, and &rite this on the board netto the stan-a# E%phasi-e to the% that here they can practice telling &hat they do understand,ignoring &ords or concepts they do not understand# "o& that you and they have read the &hole poe%, as' students &hat the%es eist in the poe%#List these on the board# ;s' the% &hat they do understand# List these things#

"et, as' students to su$$ari'e or retell the &hole poe% in their o&n &ords# 4rite>Su%%ari-e? in the Strategies list#

.# Jeep the Strategies list on the board, revie& it and ho& you used each one as you read >Ma'ing aist,? and as' students to copy it in their notes# Eplain that they &ill use this process and these

strategies no& to interpret the poe% they have been assigned#7# 4rite the follo&ing tas's for students on the board61# Dead your poe% all the &ay through one to t&o ti%es &ithout stopping &hen you read

so%ething you do not understand## Gse the follo&ing strategies (or a co%bination of both) to interpret your poe%6

=araphrase6 :nterpret into your o&n &ords &hat is going on in the poe%# isuali-e6 Ara& pictures of i%ages you see in your head as you read#

Brea'ing the tas' into the above tas' %ay help students &ho feel over&hel%ed by the process of poetry interpretation# Students &ho &ish %ay then %ove on to deter%ining ho& poetic ele%ents are at &or' in the poe%#

Eplain that they can focus on one or t&o poetic ter%s at a ti%e, not all, so they do not feelover&hel%ed#8# ;ssign students to groups of si students# ;ssign each group a poet fro% the tetual

focus#!# =ass out handout &ith 5uestions 18 for students to ans&er independently## Have students independently co%plete handout and &or' on their poe%3s

interpretation#9# $he goal of the presentation is for each student in each group to collaborate on

providing a brief bac'ground of the poe% and poet and then ta'e the class audience through the poe%, using poetic ter%inology to eplain &hat the poet is sayinggiving various %eanings for&ords and lines as &ell as &hat the poe%3s overall %essage is# Students should be prepared toclai% &hat the poet &ants the audience to thin' about or do as a result of this %essage# ;llstudents should be prepared individually to discuss these topics &ith authority#

1*# Have groups organi-e ho& they &ill present their findings in the Socratic Se%inar#11# :n the last fifteen %inutes, 1 students in each group can research on a laptop the

poe% and poet and share findings &ith their group#1# Collect Lyric+=oetry ;nalysis 4ritten Deflection#

0o$e#or):

• inish ans&ering 5uestions 18 on handout in preparation for Socratic Se%inar#

.8


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Assess$ent:

• Circulate as groups prepare for the Socratic Se%inar# (unctional assess%ent)

• Chec' in &ith individual students to assess ho& they can use the %odeled strategies

and poetic ter%s to analy-e poetry and a poe%3s %essage# (unctional assess%ent)

• ;ssess Lyric+=oetry ;nalysis 4ritten Deflection our of a possible three hundred point

according to rubric# (Su%%ative or postassess%ent)

English

ocratic e$inar

+or) inde&endently to ans#er the %ollo#ing 7uestions a3out your grou&Hs

&oe$*

1) 4hat is the %essage of the poe%@

) 4hat lines are %ost effective at co%%unicating this %essage@

) ;naly-e the follo&ing poetic ele%ents in the poe% and ho& they&or' to&ard co%%unicating the poe%3s %essage6

• alliteration

• allusion• diction

• i%agery

• %etaphor

• si%ile

• sy%bol

.) Aid this poe% deepen your a&areness of a particular issue@ :f yeho&@ :f not, &hy not@

7) Have you heard of this issue in the %edia@ :f you have, &hat havyou heard@ :f you have not, &hy do you thin' you have not@

8) Ho& does the poet appeal to the audience3s e%otion inco%%unicating the %essage of the poe%@

.!


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Ma'ing a istBy "ao%i Shihab "ye

or the first ti%e, on the road north of $a%pico,: felt the life sliding out of %e,a dru% in the desert, harder and harder to hear#: &as seven, : lay in the car &atching pal% trees s&irl a sic'ening pattern past the glass#

My sto%ach &as a %elon split &ide inside %y s'in#

Ho& do you 'no& if you are going to die@: begged %y %other#4e had been traveling for days#4ith strange confidence she ans&ered,4hen you can no longer %a'e a fist#

Iears later : s%ile to thin' of that


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; little =alestinian dangles a truc' on the front page#Ho%eless fig, this tragedy &ith a terrible rootis too big for us# 4hat flag can &e &ave@: &ave the flag of stone and seed,table %at stitched in blue#

: call %y father, &e tal' around the ne&s#:t is too %uch for hi%,neither of his t&o languages can reach it#

: drive into the country to find sheep, co&s,to plead &ith the air64ho calls anyone ci&ili2ed(4here can the crying heart gra-e@4hat does a true ;rab do no&@ P198Q

Believing in IronBy Yusef Komunyakaa

The hills my brothers & I creatednever balanced, & it took years To discover how the world worked.We could look at a tree of blackbirds& tell you how many were there,But with the scra dealer!ur math was always o".Weeks of lifting & grunting#ever added u to much,But we couldn$t stoBelieving in iron.%bandoned trucks & carsWere held to the groundBy thick, nostalgic ngers of vines'trong as a do(en sharecroers.We$d return with our wheelbarrow)roaning under a new load, Yet tiger lilies lived betterIn their languid, %ugust domain.%mong aer & *oke bottles+oundry smoke erased sunsets,& we couldn$t believe ironeft men bent so close to the earth%s if the ore under their breathWeighed down the gray sky.

'ometimes I dreamt how our hillsWashed into a sea of metal,-ow it all became an anchor+or a warshi or bomber!ut over trees with blooms

Too red to look at.

.9


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;laban-a6 :n =raise of Local 1**

by Mart^n Espada

For the +3 members of $otel 1mployees and Restaurant 1mployees Local )44% wor5ing at the

on the -orld restaurant% who lost their li&es in the attac5 on the -orld Trade "enter.

Alaban2a. =raise the coo' &ith the shaven head

and a tattoo on his shoulder that said 6ye,

a blueeyed =uerto Dican &ith people fro% a


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$aiti% 0emen% 8hana% Bangladesh.

Alaban2a. =raise the 'itchen in the %orning,

&here the gas burned blue on every stove

and ehaust fans fired their di%inutive propellers,

hands crac'ed eggs &ith 5uic' thu%bs

or sliced open cartons to build an altar of cans#

Alaban2a. =raise the busboyKs %usic, the chime9chime

of his dishes and silver&are in the tub#

Alaban2a. =raise the dishdog, the dish&asher

&ho &or'ed that %orning because another dish&asher

could not stop coughing, or because he needed overti%e

to pile the sac's of rice and beans for a fa%ily

floating a&ay on so%e Caribbean island plagued by frogs#

Alaban2a. =raise the &aitress &ho heard the radio in the 'itchen

and sang to herself about a %an gone# Alaban2a.

;fter the thunder &ilder than thunder,

after the boo%ing ice stor% of glass fro% the great &indo&s,

after the radio stopped singing li'e a tree full of terrified frogs,

after night burst the da% of day and flooded the 'itchen,

for a ti%e the stoves glo&ed in dar'ness li'e the lighthouse in

a


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Alaban2a. 4hen the &ar began, fro% Manhattan to Jabul

t&o constellations of s%o'e rose and drifted to each other,

%ingling in icy air, and one said &ith an ;fghan tongue6

Teach me to dance. -e ha&e no music here.

;nd the other said &ith a Spanish tongue6

: will teach you. /usic is all we ha&e.


Lesson Plan ;ay >: Socratic Se%inar

$etual ocus6 "ao%i Shihab "ye, >Blood?2 Martin Espada, >;laban-a6 :n =raise of Local 1**?2 and IusefJo%unya'aa, >Believing in :ron?

Rationale:

$hrough research on a poet3s life students can develop so%e understanding of &hy she or he has created a particular %essage# By deep analysis of poetry, including language and poetic ele%ents, students candeter%ine ho& an effective %essage is co%%unicated through the %ediu% of poetry# :n preparing for a presentation and the presentation itself, students are able to synthesi-e the infor%ation they have accruedto teach their peers about poets and their &or'#

;aily !34ecti"es:

• :n s%all groups, students &ill present biographical infor%ation on a poet#

• $hey &ill guide their peers through an interpretation of their group3s poe%, using

correct ter%inology and telling &hat they believe the poe%3s %essage to be#

• $hey &ill ta'e 5uestions about their group3s poet and poe% fro% their class%ates#


1# Collect Lyric or =oetry ;nalysis essay## ;rrange des's in a circle, &ith five des's in the center for the presenting group## Have students in the audience ta'e out the appropriate poe% for the group presenting and =oetic

$er%inology handout#.# Each group &ill give a bac'ground of the poe% and poet and then ta'e the audience through the

poe%, giving possible %eanings of &ords+phrases+lines and using %any poetic ter%s and the poet3s reason for using the%# 0roups %ust be able to suggest ho& the poet uses poetic ele%entsand &ord choice to co%%unicate her or his %essage#

7# Aistribute inal =ro


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Poetry Socratic Se"inar

Teacher %ame1 'r$ e"ian

Student %ame1 2222222222222222222222222222222222222222

CATEGORY 4 3 2 1Infor"ation All information and

'uestions presentedin the seminar wereclear, accurate andthorough"

*ost information and'uestions presentedin the seminar wereclear, accurate andthorough"

*ost informationpresented in theseminar was clearand accurate, #utwas not usuallythorough" %o'uestions wereasked"

nformation hadse&eral inaccuraciesOR was usually notclear"

#$e of%act$/Stati$tic$

E&ery ma-or pointwas well supportedwith specific linesfrom the poetryand)or poet #io"

E&ery ma-or pointwas ade'uatelysupported withrele&ant supportfrom the poetry and

#io"

E&ery ma-or pointwas supported withfacts, #ut therele&ance of somewas 'uestiona#le"

E&ery point was notsupported"

#nder$tanding of Topic

You clearlyunderstood the topic.poetry terminology/in0depth andpresented theirinformation forcefullyand con&incingly"

You clearlyunderstood the topicin0depth andpresented theirinformation withease"

You seemed tounderstand the mainpoints of the topicand presented thosewith ease"

You did not show anade'uateunderstand

Lyric and Poetry

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Transcript of Lyric and Poetry