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The Vernacular has been the meaning of inspiration and creative thinking for modern African American authors because it represents the resilience of culture to tyranny and ill-usage. I chose to talk about the "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" it is written by an ex-slave Wallace Willis in the late 19th. The theme is concerning crossover to freedom from slavery and aiming for heaven. Swing low, Sweet Chariot indicates that the discharge from hardship isn't expected till when death. "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" doesn't, therefore, have a "rebellious" feel to that. individuals could say that religion in God and Heaven is a vital part of the mood of the spiritual. Slaves sing spiritually, Music is one of the ways to express their emotions even they are in sorrow.  Spirituality is something that makes humans relieved from dependence on material things and helps to understand the higher purpose of life. This is the reason why slaves are singing spiritually and achieving their higher purpose in life which is freedom.

“carry me home”
this piece is supposed to capture the sentiments of a complete culture. Finally, the last stanza’s stress on the speaker meeting of their friends once inward “home” tells us that the liberty being sung of won't simply be for a person, but for everybody. This line shows their belief that earth life is just temporary and haven is the only and natural home for slaves. The law in the south shoe that slaves have no home the place where they live is their owners' house, When I repeatedly listen to this folk I feel how connected they are to the divine. Many authors analyzed the meaning of the word “Home” On a non-literal level, “chariot” could symbolize the Underground Railroad a network of transportation and safe homes that assisted slaves in their break-loose Southern plantations while “Home” would be a destination in the North, faraway from slavery.

Even England rugby supporters sing this  Song to support the game Because nobody has nonetheless written a national song for a European country that has caught the national imagination. Once somebody will, it will step by step take over. A group from the Benedictine faculty Douai began to sing a rugby club favorite - the gospel hymn Swing Low, Sweet Chariot in honor of their new hero, and therefore the whole crowd joined in. the Britain national football game union team came back from the 2003 tourney triumph in Australia on a plane dubbed 'Sweet Chariot'.

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For this week's discussion post the piece of vernacular tradition I found most interesting was the work song "Pick a bale of cotton". I found this piece the most compelling chiefly because while the lyrics and the concept of the song is so simple, there is such a weight behind why the song was created and sung in the first place.

For this piece, there was an early 1940s version sung by Lead Belly with the original lyrics as well as a sample found in Ludacris's 2005 song, "The Potion". In 'The Potion', Ludacris raps the lyrics to 'Pick a Bale of Cotton' near the end of his song, however, instead of the lyrics "pick a bale a day" from the original, he raps "pick a bale of hay". I wasn't too sure about the significance of the lyric change, but I do know that Ludacris using lyrics from this work song was definitely significant.

After repeating the lyrics he sampled from 'Pick a Bale of Cotton', Ludacris goes on to rap about how while he has gained financial security from his rap career, he's really not too different from those making "minimum wage" since he's "still locked in a similar cage". from this, I take that he means that even though he has gained fame and fortune through his rapping career he still faces the same racial discrimination and hurdles as the average African American. In addition to this he also talks about "pickin' records like cotton" and how he is "workin' like a slave", possibly meaning that he feels the music industry, in a way, is using him to their benefit without actually viewing or treating him like a person. I also believe that the use of 'Pick a Bale of Cotton' in itself is significant due to the history of it's origins. Even without more lyrics that allow the listener to he Ludacris's modern take of what those words mean to him in the current day and age, they have such a strong significance and history behind them it's clear he is trying to express feeling trapped and struggling.

I thought that, overall, this piece caught my attention because a song created to distract while working in the fields, was able to transcend over 100 years and be used in a new piece of art in a meaningful and relevant way.

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For this weeks discussion, the piece I chose from the vernacular tradition that had caught my eye had been “Backwater Blues”

This song had brought back memories back to when my Aunt would pick me up from school and drive me home. She would play this song, and music exactly like it. She used to tell me that it was music her mother and father would play endlessly, and that it had so calming. The song goes back to talk about an incident surrounding the flooding of Nashville in 1927. It talks about loss of life, to hundreds of those who had been affected by the flood. I found it so astonishing how I had thought so differently when listening to the song, finding it calming and nice to drive to. To be more specific, the incident that had occurred in the song is the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. Out of the versions we have seen out of this song, the one I had enjoyed the most was the one by Bessie Smith, because that was the version my Aunt had played. Although when I listened to it when I was younger, I look at it differently now that I am reminded of the thousands of lives of those who lost their lives of homes in the flooding decades ago.  Of course, I don't just get that out of the song. The sound and voices of the blues when they were at their peak is just such a different sound than anything made in today's era. It is underrated, and not only is the backwater blues a good start but there is plenty more to listen to from these brilliant artists.

Tyler chita

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For this weeks discussion board, the piece I chose from the vernacular tradition was Rock Me Mama mainly because my dad and I used to listen to this all the time on our car rides to our lake house in New York and it just brought back such innocent, pure memories from when I was younger. I find it astonishing that its history is more than I had thought or expected. There are so many remakes and covers. It's incredible that each remake or version was taken from the other, as inspiration for the next. Its history made the song able to be changed and adjusted to each artist creating their own magical version of the original. This song and its many versions that I had no idea of until now, really encompasses how vernacular tradition constantly changes and reworks such great work to create even more great work that can reach a whole new audience or generation in the same but also completely different way. It shows how versatile a piece really can be. With each version a new culture is shown or expressed reaching deeper and deeper meaning and creating even more beautiful works of art, and also emphasizing how pure and raw the original version was and still is, which can generate a new found appreciation for the original. Songs like this that can morph and change make me appreciate the music so much more because as we change and we grow so does the music and it changes and grows with us keeping its value. It reminds me of many more artists and musicians that create covers of original songs with their own spin or twist on the original or add in a new verse. It shows how each generate views music and how with each generation, the melody of a song can change, or the lyrics of a song can change, etc, and it is just as beautiful and meaningful. This song brings back such great memories and will continue to bring more.

Graciela Ross

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Hello class and Professor Shaw,

For this week’s discussion, the piece of the Vernacular tradition that absolutely peak my attention and I found most compelling is “Sinking of the Titanic”

This story has been told numerous times and never have I ever heard that an African American survived. I always wonder, Were there any African American people on Titanic? After reading and breaking down this art piece, it came to my attention that African Americans were indeed on board. However, they were not partying, drinking, or dancing. They were working in the boiler room and engine room, to keep this Luxury steamship going. After reading “Sinking of the Titanic” from the Norton Anthology of African American Literature version, I decided to listen to a different version of “Sinking of the Titanic”. The new version that I spend twenty-five minutes listening had more information about what caused the devastated disaster and the survival rates. However, no African Americans were even mentioned it was like a totally different story line. This story has been altered to hide the truth about how African American were treated back in the days. The part that really got my attention from the textbook was the Captain and Shine dialogue. Shine was an African American working in the boiler room and Captain was the person in command of the ship.

Shine came running to the captain when he found out the ship was sinking.

The first Time Shine said to the captain, “please the water in the boiler room is up to my knees”. the captain then replied, “Take your Black self on back down there! I got a hundred fifty pumps to keep the boiler room clear”. At this point Shine went back working and singing. Shine exact words was, “Lord have mercy, Lord on my soul.” Shine did not believe nor was he convinced that the hundred and fifty pumps could keep him safe. The way the captain spoke to shine with no respect at all, touched my heart. I have seen similar situation where managers take advantage of employee’s rights. Therefore, I am so grateful in today society there are more systems in place to protect employee’s rights and labor rights.

The second piece that stood out to me the most is when Shine realized that his life is worth more than gold. shine came yelling to the captain, “The waters round my neck. “Captain replied,” Go back! Neither fear nor doubt! I got a hundred more pumps to keep the water out.” This was the breaking point for Shine he didn’t care how much pumps were there or how many more he had coming. Shine told the captain, “Your words sound happy, and your words sound true, but this is one time, Cap, your words won’t do.” In life at some point, we all must know when our safety is at risk. Shine realized that is safety was at risk and acted accordingly. It is unethically for managers to force us to do tasks that are unsafe. Especially in a life and death situation.

This powerful art piece proved that they had no respect for African American. They would rather mislead and mistreat African American. Perfect example is when the Captain tried to convince shine, he said, “Shine, Shine, save poor me, and I’m make you as rich as any man can be.”   Shine stood up for himself and no matter how much goals or riches were offer to him, he kept it moving. This art piece had some powerful messages that is still relevant in today society. Treat others with respect. It doesn't matter the race or the color, life is more valuable than gold.

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Out of everthing I watched and read this week, the one which most resonates with me is the spiritual " Go Down Moses". This kind of song has alot of meaning to slaves then to their descendants up until now and in the future what it will mean to the unborn black american babies. Slaves had many coping mechanisms with dealing with their bondage in these time. Some chose death, suicide, some chose to work untill they were old and died, some chose to ran away, but there were the very creative and imagintive ones who found the creativity in other artforms. From artforms these special kinds of music were born. Generation to generation, the 1914 version has a much different tone than the 1959 version. the earliest recording, the music sounded very depressing almost like persons trying to get through a tough work day and trying to make the most of it. There was little to no instrument in the background just the natural voices trying to get the message across. In the 1958 version it became more melodic and sounded like it served more entertainment purposes. Also has alot more rythm and a dance feel to it.
In "the fresh prince of bel air" scene I think although it was done on a comedic level, it was done very cleverly and got the message across. The concept displayed in the scene was two black men kept against their will and started signing to get through the short sentence they were serving. One more thing I should say is that the white biker character hilariously ending the song with his own version lets the audience know how far the song has transitioned from black to white culture and most importanly music is universal and brings people together

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I had a difficult time deciding which piece to choose for this assignment because each piece of writing has so much to discuss, even the short pieces. I could narrow down the choice to a piece from the blues section, Backwater Blues. I think I automatically gravitated to the blues for a couple of different reasons, but mainly because most mainstream American rock music originated from the blues and secondly because there is such an incredible variety to this particular type of music because each artist has their own way of performing the blues. This is evident in the three versions of Blackwater Blues that we listened to for the assignment. Bessie Smith’s version is the original and in my opinion the best. As stated in many descriptions of her style, she “emulates” the blues by using her voice to hit “blue notes” (1). In the Twenties, artists did not have a lot to work with as far as help in making them sound better or even having access to other musicians, hence adapting their voices to be able to reach an audience and to make up for lacking instruments. B.B. King’s version also does this but in a very different way due to how slow and drawn out his version is along with using horns, which gives an even more drawn out and exasperated feel to the song.

In the introduction to the lecture on page 6, a phrase from Langston Hughes is used to describe what happens when vernacular forms of artistic expression are exploited or as Hughes says, “taken our blues and gone”. When I read and then listened to Blackwater Blues, I immediately thought of Led Zeppelin’s version of When the Levee Breaks and remembered that it was a remake of an old blues song by Memphis Minnie, about the same flooding disaster as Backwater Blues. Both songs were popular in their day, but not as popular as when Led Zeppelin remade When the Levee breaks. I have always had this underlying awe for these African American women artists who were a huge part of the origins of rock and roll by creating some of the original blues masterpieces and a sense of sadness that more people don’t know how it all started.

The relevance that Backwater Blues might have today is that there are still thousands of unfortunate people being forced to move from their homes due to flooding, still in the same locations as in the Twenties. Because people can not afford to move out of the flood zones along the Mississippi River, history is doomed to repeat itself.

1.      Pandasthumb, “Listening Guide to Bessie Smith’s Backwater Blues

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For this assignment I chose Rock Me Mama, as its Wagon Wheel rendition was a song I listened to a lot in my teenage years. Despite this, I had no knowledge of its history, or that it was even a remake in the first place. Further research revealed that the song had an even more storied history than I’d originally thought—its hard to say what version is definitively the first, as the song changed hands and was disseminated many times throughout the years. One of the earliest versions is Roll Me Mama by Curtis Jones in 1939, then Rockin’ Chair Blues by Big Bill Broonzy in 1940, followed by Arthur Crudup’s 1941 version, Lightnin’ Hopkins’ in 1970, Bob Dylan’s unfinished snippet in 1973, and finally Wagon Wheel by Darius Rucker in 2013. Each artist took inspiration from the last, and none fully acknowledged the song as their own making because of it. Because of this, I feel like Rock Me Mama, as it encompasses all versions and iterations, is a near-perfect example of how vernacular tradition and folk songs are constantly shifting and evolving, disseminating into popular culture while simultaneously creating something even bigger than itself as it progresses. In a similar vein, it also makes me think of the no-doubt countless number of songs and other creative outlets whose African American roots from the vernacular tradition weren’t as well-preserved and remain uncredited or misappropriated today.

Another reason I chose Rock Me Mama in particular is because of the way the song shifted and changed over decades was fascinating. The most obvious change is in the genre itself, having started off a traditional Blues melody before slowly morphing into the solidly country rendition of today in the form of Wagon Wheel. This change can most likely be attributed to the changing times; unlike in the previous decades where Blues music was more prominent and mainstream, by the 2010s that genre had more or less faded out of the public conscious, and so it was revamped for a new audience. Despite this, the song’s overall message stayed the same: finding refuge and comfort in a loved ones’ arms and enjoying the simple pleasures in life, which I believe is a significant reason why the song remained popular through the decades. While the Blues era of the song may have been more somber (with its tone reflecting more of the often-melancholic subjects typically explored through the medium—usually dealing with discrimination, segregation, and other more personal woes felt by its predominantly black audience and artists), the Country version still encapsulates the heart of the song.

Hallgeir. “The Roots of Wagon Wheel Aka Rock Me Mama.” All Dylan - A Bob Dylan Blog, 27 July 2014, https://alldylan.com/the-roots-of-wagon-wheel-aka-rock-me-mama/.

“Old Crow Medicine Show: Growing at the Speed of Asparagus.” Relix Media, 27 July 2018, https://relix.com/articles/detail/old_crow_medicine_show_growing_at_the_speed_of_asparagus/.

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From 1965's Walt Disney's America: Brer Rabbit Outfoxes Brer Fox Again

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I have been a big fan of Disney World since I was a child, having gone to the parks in Orlando multiple times. At Magic Kingdom, one of my favorite rides was, and still is Splash Mountain, though the movie the ride is based on, Song of the South, has long been withheld from home release by Disney due to its happy depiction of slavery and racist undertones. Recently, I stumbled upon a book from my Mom's Childhood, Walt Disney's America, part of the Wonderful World of Walt Disney Collection, and read one of the stories from our class, albeit an illustrated version. I was shocked at what I was reading due to the racist pictures, the characters attempting to copy the African-American vernacular in what was nothing more than a poor lampooning of the culture, and the way the book and movie were thought of as socially acceptable at the time of release. The short section tells about the time Brer Rabbit was tricked by Brer Fox and Bear when they created a Tar-Baby, which was a figure made to make fun of African-Americans. In actuality, the term tar-baby can be considered a racist and derogatory term for black people. In the story, the narrator of the story writes in a way that mimics the way the language sounds, writing lines like "Den Brer Rabbit holler real loud, at de Tar-Baby, loud ez he can," which tries to make the language fun, but actually makes the person reading it sound uneducated, which was the feeling towards black people at the time, perpetuated by drawings like the one shown above. While the movie version is notable for being the first to win an African-American woman an Oscar, even that was met with controversy, as she was given an honorary award, rather than a serious acting award, and she was not allowed to sit with any of the white people who were at the presentation, as segregation was still enforced at the time. As I have not seen the movie in years, I was unable to really say that I remember it as being racist, but completely understand at this point why the Disney company is retheming Splash Mountain to a Princess and the Frog ride next year, so it will celebrate African-American culture, rather than lampooning it as the movie that inspired the ride had. I also found the text to be surprising, as the Disney company is known for being progressive, yet the story was the complete opposite and seemed to celebrate regression and a bygone era.

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Out of all of the readings and songs assigned this week I would say that the text on Spirituals and the song "Go Down Moses" stood out the most me. Many people use spirituality as a means of self worth, a sense of identity and belonging and also as an escape from reality. In the text on page 10-11 it described that in many songs people wanted to grow wings and fly away and God, their savior, would carry them home; "this world is not my home" was a steady theme in the spirituals one that that offered its singer-hearers vision of a peaceful, loving realm beyond the one in which they labored... some of the songs bespoke the dream of flying away, leaving the world of care behind."

"I've got two wings for to veil my face
I've got two wings for to fly away.."
This theme was very prevalent in the song Go Down Moses through the lyrics

"When they had reached the other shore,
Let my people go,
they let the song of triumph soar,
Let my people go.

Lord, help us all from bondage flee,
Let my people go,
and let us all in Christ be free,
Let my people go."
Spirituality gave people hope especially those whom could not see a light at the end of the tunnel as slaves never knew when they would be set free; whether it was in the flesh from bondage on earth or if only reaching heavens gates was their ticket to freedom. In Go Down Moses the singer refers to slaves of Egypt as in this time frame, history was repeating in the United States through heavy slave trade and discrimination.
In today's political climate especially with not only discrimination but also the patriarchy pushing to take over women's rights, it is a wonder if we are repeating history yet again. We are back tracking on human rights and the right to freedom for women because of the men in power, many people are questioning how far back are we going to step into the past in this country. Many people have brought up that the government is soon coming for gay marriage and interracial marriages. The American societies' culture the past few decades has been built on Individualism which puts us at a disadvantage for trying to incite a big civil uproar over a multitude of things. Many of us are turning to spirituality to find control and a means of escape of the anxiety of living in this country. Many Americans just wish to fly away as those who sang these songs. A country that screams the land of freedom yet makes people wish to escape because of the abuse of the system, discrimination and restriction of human rights for centuries, that are dwindling over time, doesn't scream in truth.

-Calista Bailey

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Hello everyone and Professor Shaw.

For this week’s discussion board, the piece from the vernacular tradition that I found most compelling was the “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”, and I am going to talk about the piece and what resonated with me about it. Before I studied the piece in detail, I took a quick glance through the song and there was something that really stood out to me. That was the powerful message of ‘Freedom’ that it was displaying. Towards the bottom of the page and under the song, the book even indicates that the song itself is cited for “not just celebrating the hope of release into heaven but signaling the plan or moment to be carried “home” to freedom by the Underground Railroad system”. This popular ‘slave’ song did not only serve as a celebration purpose, but rather for indicating the series of steps planned out to achieve the desired freedom and escape the life they were currently living.

Another part of the song could be crucially interpreted while trying to understand the overall key plan are the lyrics “Swing low, sweet chariot, Coming for to carry me home”. These lines, the second part in particular, are repeated the most throughout the song and there must be a hidden message or purpose for that. Firstly, “swing low, sweet chariot” can be easily referred back to the underground railroad system. The “swing low” can be defined to keep up the steady escape towards freedom while remaining hidden from the other hurdles along the way. The “sweet chariot” can be interpreted into the underground railroad system itself that is designed for a safe and hidden route to a ride of freedom. Lastly, the “Coming for to carry me home” can be explained as the previous slaves that escaped or other people that came back for the rest (whether it was biological family or not). I find it incredible that ‘slaves’ were able to use such a tactic as a form of retaliation or escape. After interpreting just the intent of the song and a few lines, I was resonated with mixed emotions just as when hearing the song.

When I was doing the assignment, I saw that the ‘slave’ song “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” is sung by numerous different singers in various melodies, rhythm, tones, musical beats, etc. Personally, I thought this was all incredible to hear and witness, especially when viewing the lyrics and really understanding the meaning/message while trying to feel the emotion behind it. Also, the fact that this song has been sung by many artists even today proves the great impact it has left on the people beyond its proposed age/audience.

This piece has really shown me how something such as music would prove to pack such an impact on people during the crucial period of time and even present day, decades later. It can be seen from various points of view, but music once again has been utilized to a great value.

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Hello,

For this week I decided to pick “Go Down Moses'’, as a piece from the vernacular tradition that I found most interesting. This was a very interesting piece because I feel Ancient Egyptian civilization and the slavery era was one of the most important periods of human history and the most complex. What resonated the most with me about this piece was the religious factor. As the song states that Moses, the leader of the Jews in Ancient Egypt, “go down and tell the Pharaoh to let his people go“. Which basically means what it is read as, to free people from the restraints and. This song was created by slaves to communicate in a sceretive way with other slaves and mainly abolitionists.

The song I chose did have different versions, one was the 1941 recording by the Tuskegee Institute singers,  the other was by Louis Armstrong which was sung in 1958 and the other wasa  comedy type song, which took place in “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air”. The 1941 version has a very monotone and kind of depressing sound to it. It almost feels like they are praying and sort of begging. As for the 1958 version, it sounds like a  jazz song you could bop your head to as in the 1941 version I did not feel that way. The way the singer sings the song it almost sounds like he is trying to tell a story in a passamtic way. As for the Fresh Prince version, as a comedy the show tries to, sort of make fun of the song. As the two colored actors start to sing the song, a white actor comes out of nowhere and starts to sing the song with different lyrics to mock them.

There still might be alot of relevance in today's world with this song. For example, with what was going on in Isreal/Palestine and North Korea/the world. Although both of these cases are not very similar, the song correlates to both. Palestine wants to be free of Isreals control and be an independent state and in North Koreas case , the world sees the residents as slaves and imprsioned. Although people might have different opinions but as long as there are people who think they are not ebing traded fairly or as less, this song will always be relevant in today's world.

Thank you for taking the time to read through my response,

Muhammad Chaudhry

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Samuel Theron
The piece that resonated with me most was “Bars Fight” by Lucy Terry. I found her to be remarkably fascinating in that even though she was kidnapped from Africa as an infant and sold into slavery in Rhode Island, Lucy was still compelled to convey sympathy for white people slaughtered by Native Americans. Even after Williams College trustees refused to change their policy of racial discrimination and admit her oldest son, she still had sympathy for the dead white people. In my opinion I feel “Bars Fight” is very much relatable and resonates with the todays African American in that although white people are still inhumanly mistreating and murdering them; black folks continue to show sympathy when deserving whites are killed. Though oppressed and enslaved by Lucy seems to still feel as though the men and women that died that night shouldn’t have died such gruesome deaths. I would dare to say the poem is akin to Stockholm syndrome.

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When I listened to “Pick a Bale of Cotton” for the first time without any previous context made my soul hurt. Then I noticed how fast they were singing. And I though to myself, “They were probably singing that fast to pace themselves on how much cotton they had to pick.” And now after reading the book my theory was correct. Which was even more heartbreaking.  During this realization, I also noticed the semi upbeat tone the song was sung in. It made me think that they had accepted their fate of slavery and just did what they had to do because they had no choice.

Then I listened to Ludacris’s song “The Potion”. I was kind of taken aback when he said “Oh lordy, pick a bail of cotton”.  But as I kept listening as compared his extensive working to slavey. Which I can find understandable. I understand where he is coming from in personal stance due to the fact that I am a Black woman. Through personal experience I feel like I must work twice as harder than my other counterparts simply because I am Black. For example, he says, “More money but still locked in a similar cage”. I interpreted that as Black people are free but still caged in due to our blackness. Which is quite alarming since the song came out in the early 2000’s. Another line that stuck out to me was, “Still workin' like a slave, learnin' tricks of the trade. In a ghetto state of mind, say I'm rich and I'm paid. Pickin' records like cotton in the thick of the day.” I think that he is referring to the back breaking of becoming a successful musician in the United States. As I stated before I feel like Black people have to work harder than our other counter parts to be successful. So, he was most likely doing any and everything to guarantee his success. Which may have felt like slavery since it’s not an easy goal to reach. Especially before all of the streaming services and social media apps we have now.

I respect Ludacris for using “Pick a Bale of Cotton” in his music because. It gives relatability from slave times to modern times. As unfortunate as it is that Black people had to endure slavery and racism. I also found it incredible that these songs are still being passed down and appreciated. Which is why I found this song so significant to me.

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Out of the many interesting readings this week the one that had the most effect on me not only in an academic sense, but an emotional sense was “Promises of Freedom.” While this secular rhyme is short compared to other writings, the language used carries weight. In the introduction of the Vernacular Tradition Part 1 the authors write the [vernacular] “makes up a rich storehouse of materials wherein the values, styles, and character types of black American life are reflected in language that is highly energized and often marvelously eloquent.” This sentence proved itself true in each stanza of the rhyme.

The first two lines of each stanza (with exception of the third stanza) caried promises of freedom. Each first two stanzas mentioned people in the writer’s life that would be able to promise freedom. These people included his or hers “Mistiss,” and “Mosser.” After these two stanzas followed the harsh realities of those people’s lives or decisions.

The second half of each stanza the writer talked about the false promises of the people who could grant freedom. Either the person would not die or would lie before they would die. The lying from the “Mosser,” in the last two stanzas became evident in the last line of the rhyme, “May de Devil preach ‘is fūner’l song.” Which from my interpretation meant, the author is hoping the “Mosser,” is sent to hell?

I am not sure what I can compare this piece of literature to in the world today. But ,I found myself comparing “Promises of Freedom” to Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have a dream,” speech. I have analyzed this speech from a technical perspective in the past. With the knowledge that I have, there is a clear discussion of false promises in both works. The quote to which I am thinking of is as follows, “When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. … It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned.”

Both works discuss the false promises frequently made to African Americans. The first work discusses the false promises made by the authors “Mistiss,” and “Mosser,” for freedom. These promises were found false by the passage of time or the lies of the people around them. King’s speech also discussed promises falsified by both the passage of time and lies of America.

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“Me and My Captain” is the secular rhymes and song that sang to me. It struck a chord because it describes the relationship between me and my boss. From the very first line, which states that “me and my captain don’t agree”. Me and my boss don’t agree! Sometimes I laugh, to prevent the tears from flowing.  The song goes on to say that “he don’t know, he don’t know my mind”.  My boss does not know my mind and don’t care to know. We are from two different worlds. One is from the world of privilege and the other is not.  One is an American and one is an immigrant. One is white and one is black.

Another line that sang to me is, “got one mind for white folks to see, ‘nother for what I know is me”. This line is saying that you put on a face for the white folks to see, because that face is the face that the white folks consider to the face of a civilized person. The face that I put on to keep your job.  The face that I have to put on to convey that I are no different than the white folks in the office; the office that has only two black employees.

As mentioned in the text, secular songs contain stinging elements of truth (20), and this song embodies that. It is true that as a black employee, your boss will kick the seat of your pants and call you names, as mentioned in the song. You will not get credit for your work as is often done to me.  As punishment for performing a flawless task, I often get knocked down a peg or two with menial tasks, sarcastic comments, and snide remarks.

The text also mentioned that “work songs of slavery and (relative) freedom falls under the secular rhymes and songs category (21).  This song, “Me and My Captain” falls under this category.  This is a song of relative freedom, because if I was truly free, then I would be able to freely tell my boss how I feel without fear of losing my job or fear of retribution.  I would be able to tell my boss I am human and deserve to be treated as such.  I would be free to remind my boss that slavery was abolished in 1865.

This piece is still relevant today, in 2022; one hundred and fifty-seven years after slavery was abolished in America because little has changed from then to now.  This piece is still relevant, because black immigrants like me is experiencing relative freedom and not absolute freedom in the workplace.  We are treated less than our white counterparts. We are paid less than our white co-workers.  We experience institutional racism and unconscious bias. As a black person in a predominately non-black workplace, I am misunderstood and feel out of place. I often feel like a slave.

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For this week’s discussion post, the piece of vernacular tradition that I found most compelling was the piece “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”.  When I first looked at the piece, I found it very powerful. It portrayed a message that the individuals were seeking freedom. Even though I wasn’t in the same situation as people who sung the song, I could feel the impact and spirit that was involved within the piece.  It was stated in the piece, “I looked over Jordan”. This is considered a metaphor for going to heaven. This piece gave people hope that eventually they would be freed and escape the life they are currently facing. With the harsh conditions that slaves were put under they often didn’t have anything to live for and felt trapped. The theme of heaven was greatly used to represent a better ending for the slavery individuals.

When reading the title of this song I had thought it sounded very familiar. It sprung upon me that this song is still very relevant. Reba McEntire sung this song live at Ryman Auditorium in Nashville Tennessee in 2017. This song has also been performed by many different artists using different beats/tones to portray the message of the song.  It is very impactful that this song is still being performed in society today. It is still leaving an impression on people who listen to the lyrics. Myself included I felt a lot of emotion when listening to this song. I felt the strength of the individuals that were experiencing this situation. Having hope to be carried “home” to freedom either by death or using the underground railroad system is what kept these individuals moving.

I find that this piece can be related to the present time we are in now. I believe this because there is still slavery going in some parts of the world in society till today. In that sense, many individuals are still going thru the unimaginable situations that occur with slavery. With the theme of death in this piece, it is representative of what comes after and awaits in heaven. This song was sung to portray hope of a better ending and outcome for all who were involved. For some that is all they had to look forward to during these harsh times. After reading this piece in depth, I have learned how much music can impact people. It can be in a good, bad, or even inspirational way. No matter what date in time, music has been used greatly to defer emotions and situations.

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Of all the readings that were assigned this week, I personally found this folktale to be the most compelling of them all. There were several aspects of this folktale that I found quite interesting, the first being how instantaneous the whole message of the folktale is. John, a slave, appears to be well-liked by the family that owns him. Obviously being a slave calls into question the conditions and just how much the slaveowners care about his humanity, but he seems to get along with everybody quite nicely from what we know in this folktale. Despite this, John is constantly reminded in the end of the story that “youse a nigger”. The slavemasters and the children love him and have “taken him in'' so to speak, but he is constantly reminded of his status in the world at large during this time period. Similar to most of the other folktales from this collection, the text is less than a full page which further adds to the almost harsh tone of the folktale. I was also interested in how this folktale ends when it reads, “Ole Massa kept callin’ ‘im and his voice was pitiful. But John kept right on steppin’ to Canada. He answered Old Massa every time he called ‘im, but he consumed on wid his bag” (61). ‘Massa’ expresses pity in his voice as he departs with the family, but stills refers to him as “nigger” and John keeps answering to it. This part was interesting as most texts I have personally read about this subject (admittedly not many) don’t tend to highlight compassion in a slave owner. Most of the time that I have ever seen a slaveowners perspective it has been violent and bitter so the change of tone was compelling. While slavery is no longer an issue in the U.S and the black community has obviosuly come a long way since the time period depicted in this folktale, ultimately this piece jumped out at me the most because it instantly reminded of “The Story of OJ” by Jay-Z. The song was released in 2017, and even though hundreds of years have passed, similar themes are explored in the two. John is a slave with essentially nothing to his name and is reminded often that everybody views him as less than human. In the Jay-Z song, the chorus explains that no matter what you do or who you are with, you will always be viewed the same. This of course is something that John comes to terms with in the folktale when despite being liked by the children, still is seen as lesser. In the song Jay says “I’m not black, I'm OJ… okay.” very sarcastically and subtly pointing out that even now, no matter what you have achieved, America still views the same more or less. The folktale clearly still holds relevance today as the black community still just wants to be viewed as equal, but are constantly met with setbacks in many forms.

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Hello everyone and Professor Shaw.

For this week's discussion, I wanted to  talk about what resonated me about Swing Low,
Sweet Chariot. When I was doing the assignment, I saw the song Swing Low, Sweet
Chariot. I was initially thinking to myself that it was about some old folk song and I was curious to hear the song first before reading. When I listened to the Bing Cosby version, it seemed like a sad song in the beginning. The reason is that the ways he was singing, it was funeral and someone has died. It felt like this person who died had a lot going on and it seem bad things that happened to the person. This song was a way to have a proper burial and to think about the happy memories that the person has gone through in their lifetime. When I heard “A band of angels, coming after me,” it also remind me of funeral and their journey to heaven. I imagine that it was like four angels lifting up the person to the gate of heaven, when I heard this part. I was also thinking that maybe the song is made in the 1937s, where they might of portray it also a sad but also reflecting on their happy life. Listening to the other song by Dolly Parton in the 1960s. It was the same type of feeling like the other song in the beginning but the song changed when there was a upbeat in instruments and it was faster pace. This song brought the happiness in the song that I didn’t feel from Bing Cosby. There was some clapping from the audience and there was some words that were added to make the song feel joyful and spiritual. On to Beyonce version, it was different and it seem like there is hate in the song. Someone was trying to sing but it didn’t work out until Beyonce started singing. Beyonce changed the mood and there was more happiness and faith that carried on from the Dolly Parton version. I realized that the song can be interpreted in different ways or feeling in the song. I wanted to understand the song more by reading the book. I saw that the song is about making a run out of slavery and into freedom. So the song can be motivational and inspiring such as the version of the song in Beyonce and Dolly Parton. Also saw that the song were sung as powerful shields against slaveholders and destroying black race. I also saw that it helped to bring hope in bring justice and peace in their current time. It was a escape from their world of working over time and violence that happened in slavery. I feel like this song would help to escape from the reality that does happened in today’s world as well.

-Christian Estefani

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Hello all and Professor Shaw,
In this weeks discussion board I am going to talk about the "Work Songs" that were provided. First with Lead Belly's, "Pick a Bail of Cotton" and secondly with Ludacris's "The Potion". I found these songs compelling because of how similar the piece of art was as well as that there is about a 70-80 year gap between the songs and this I found interesting. Ludacris using past art to create a song that still has the same meaning to the world almost a decade later is astonishing and very gutsy at the same time. Being that these songs were work songs I can see how it may motivate African Americans to break free of the overpowering white society that has held them down for centuries. Clearly the piece has relevance today because Ludacris was able to mimic the song in 2018, just four years ago. I think that while the world may not have slaves there is still a higher governing body that controls everyone and especially African Americans. Obviously the difference in technology has helped Ludacris's song sound much more modern but Lead Belly's is special because of the instruments he uses in it and his wide ranging voice to articulate certain emotions.
I believe that there is an underlying message that Ludacris was trying to bring back to light in 2018. That is of the fact that we still do what our "masters" tell us to do on a everyday basis. Whether they be our boss at work, parents/spouses at home, or or our friends even, we are confined to what they tell us to do and have no thoughts and ideas ourselves. That we are simply living the same day over and over again and have no idea when it will end. Understanding the essence of these songs can go a long way in todays society, simply because it will help us all see where we were just under a century ago.

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The poem On Being Brought from Africa to America

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The poem On Being Brought from Africa to America

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Hello Everyone And Professor Shaw.
For this week’s Discussion here I discuss about the topic.

African American literature dates to African slaves' earliest arrival in the New World in 1639, after they cast a language and literature on their own. At the coronary heart of this frame of labor lies the African American vernacular tradition.  oral varieties of expression present previous to African slaves' capabilities to examine and write withinside the English language. Sacred elements—along with spirituals, gospel, and sermons—provided pictures of a simple God who might supply vengeance upon the oppressive slave proprietors and salvation upon people who suffered below this institution. Secular forms, along with the blues, jazz, work songs and rhymes, rap, sermons, and folktales, element the emotional discomfort related to being black and dispossessed, through distinctive features of race and class, in white America.

These expressive forms were no longer, at the beginning, produced for mass circulation. They have organized varieties of expressing the realities in their everyday lives in America. These forms regularly covered coded or mystery messages about putting up with the ills of slavery.

The poem On Being Brought from Africa to America

In the poem, PhillisWheatley uses Christianity to shed light on racial differences that she experiences firsthand, planning to break down notions concerning race. We've all had moments once our assumptions were upset and when we learned one thing new about others. Once we are confronted with ideas that challenge our preconceptions, we are able to learn something new about ourselves, too, that expands our understanding of the world. The poem illustrates  things: the poet’s pleasure in the presence of God and her resentment at the painful life in America for the duration of slavery. She starts by putting forward that it's a distant God’s grace which introduced her from Africa and has stored her from ruination. She admires the distinctive features of the Christian tradition. Despite having issues and horrible injustices in existence, she admires God’s present of giving her forbearance. It is because of divine intervention that the chaotic generation of her existence is now over, and she or he is stored from the redemption of the soul. Moreover, her heart speaks approximately to the ill-treatment black humans face. They should bear hatred, bitterness and scornful conduct simply due to the dark color of their skin. What, however, remains inside the minds of the readers is the way she addresses the damaging influences of racism.

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Hello Class and Professor Shaw,

For this week’s discussion board, the piece from the vernacular tradition that resonated with me the most was the piece called “Go Down, Moses”. I have heard different performances of the song before, but I did not know fully about the meaning behind it. I just took it for just a spiritual song that was just sung in churches until digging deeper through this week's reading. It’s so interesting to learn that it was a song that signaled to the slaves that slavery was wrong, and that God also believes that it is wrong too.  It meant that they didn’t need to listen to the people who mistreated them and there were ways to break free and live a better life where nobody had to control them. Therefore, slaveowners forbid their captives from singing the song.

During bible times, the Israeli people were oppressed by the Egyptians. Moses (for those who may not be familiar) was told by God to convince the Pharaoh of Egypt to let the Israeli people go. They were enslaved and held in bondage for many years until Moses led them out of slavery to the promised land. Similarly, during the time this piece was written, slavery was on a rampage in the southern states of America. Slavery as heartbreaking as it is, and this song was the enslaved people’s only way to praise God and a way for them to communicate with each other. I also think that this piece is so beautiful because after reading the words it must've also been motivating and inspiring to those who were enslaved during that time.

I’m also wondering if this piece was also a signal that Harriet Tubman used? I know that during that time period she used the underground railroad to free the slaves from the south.

I would say this piece reminds me of our history as a country and what our ancestors had to go through. It is relevant to today because in some parts of the country slavery still occurs in different forms. So, in a way this helps and motivates us to work towards a much freer/ inclusive society. If our world and society is ever going to make progress towards the future, then we must learn from the past. After all, it’s like that saying by the philosopher George Santayana “Those who are not aware of their past are condemned to repeat it.”

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For this week's discussion, think about which piece from the vernacular tradition or early writing you found most compelling. Answer any or all of the following questions in 400 words minimum.

What resonated with you about the piece?

If you selected one of the pieces for which there were different versions (a blues song, for instance), what changes were made to the original, and why do you think it was changed?

How does the piece relate to material covered in the lecture or the introduction to the genre?

What relevance might the piece still have today?

Remember that your posts may be informal. That is, I don't expect a fully-realized argument with citations, but rather a thoughtful and reflective response. You may use first person. Refer back to the syllabus for a complete description of discussion board posts, or feel free to post a question in the Course Questions Padlet.

Finally, to receive full credit, you must post a substantive reply (about a paragraph, or 7-9 sentences) to one of your classmates.