As I was looking at the "Songs About X", I got to thinking about how this would be a very interesting way for students to practice using the themes discussed in class. I recently taught a unit on "identity" using the young adult novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian with my 11th grade class, however this is a theme that can be used in a lot books from Sandra Cisneros's The House on Mango Street to Chris Crutcher's King of the Mild Frontier to James McBride's The Color of Water. Using the novel as a starting place, students could then explore how artists use this theme in songs, and then use that activity as a place to formulate their own song lyrics/poetry about identity. In the middle/high school years, identity formation is crucial to students' development, through joining clubs to making friends, students spend their adolescence trying to figure out their own identity. By exploring this theme in pop music, they can relate that to both a text, the real world, and their own lives.
I would start by showing some popular songs about identity, and have students analyze what sort of identity they are trying to portray. Is it their true identity? Is it an identity they are trying to be? Is the community's opinion of the artist and the artist's opinion of self in conflict like Junior in ATDPTI? Are they trying to fit in or trying to go against community expectations? Some examples could be:
"Look At Me I'm Sandra Dee" - Grease movie soundtrack
"Who are You" - The Who
"Breathe Me" - Sia
"I'm a Bitch" - Meredith Brooks
"Extraordinary Machine" - Fiona Apple
"Autobiography" - Ashlee Simpson
"Survivor" - Destiny's Child
"Real Slim Shady" - Eminem (or any other Eminem song, for that matter)
"Redneck Woman" - Gretchen Wilson
"I'm Just A Girl" - No Doubt
"The Joker" - Steve Miller Band
"That's Not My Name" - The Ting Tings
etc., etc., etc.,
After students examine how identity is portrayed in these or any songs of their choice, they can consider the image the artist is trying to project to the audience, how they achieve this (word choice, repetition, music/genre, etc.), and then they can also explore the elements of poetry within that: rhyme, meter, alliteration, allusion, voice, tone, audience, purpose, etc.....
After exploring the theme of community/personal identity, students would then be asked to write their own poetry/song lyrics based on their community/personal identity, either in conflict or not. What image are THEY trying to project?
As an added assignment, they could follow up with in class presentations or GarageBand or iMovie versions of their identity songs.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Pop Culture Lesson Plan #2
The purpose of this activity is to help students critically analyze the media around them, specifically the television shows and movies targeted towards a teenage audience. This activity will ask students to look at a movie or television show with a teen-centered plot and analyze the stereotypical roles of the people within that show/movie.
1. Ask students to consider television shows like "The O.C.", "Beverly Hills 90210" (old and new versions), "Gossip Girl", "One Tree Hill", "Privileged", "Dawson's Creek", "Saved By the Bell", "The Hills", or "Laguna Beach", etc., or movies like Mean Girls, Can't Hardly Wait, The Breakfast Club, Varsity Blues, American Pie, 10 Things I Hate About You, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Dazed and Confused, etc. etc. etc.....
2. Have students take either a television show or movie of their choice and consider the underlying messages of that show that they may or may not be aware of. What stereotypes do they see in this show/movie in regards to:
- race
- age
- culture
- gender
- drug/alcohol use
- socioeconomic status
- teenage sex/pregnancy
- fashion
- school/academic performance
- popularity
- any other cultural/societal "norms"/ expectations
3. Notice what elements are missing? What is intentionally left out? What does that mean for teenagers? Do these forms of media reflect our culture or do we reflect the culture of the media?
4. Then consider the larger implications of stereotypes in the media... why do we make generalizations and stereotypes? Do they help us or hurt us? What are the implications of sending these sort of messages to a teenage audience? How can we change/encourage this?? Lastly, can you think of any television shows/movies that challenge these stereotypes? What are they? What makes them different?
Pop Culture Lesson Plan #1
Branching off an activity we did in the 5150 class, I wanted students to have a lesson where they could begin to critically analyze the lyrics of popular music as well as the deeper meaning of messages in movies. Further, it will help students understand the relationship between pop culture and the outside world, that is, using music as a means of reflecting the issues of the society in which we live.
1. Begin with a discussion of problems that teens or adolescents see in their own daily lives. Consider things like peer pressure (alcohol and drug related), teenage sex, conformity, relationships, pressure to do well in school, family and friend issues, etc. Using three of the issues that are most relevant, discuss the ways in which media portrays those issues, both positively AND negatively.
2. Then, hold a brief discussion on some of the larger issues of our society. Consider things like disease epidemics, war, politics, environmental issues, poverty, etc. Then discuss the ways in which the media portrays these issues, both positively and negatively.
3. Give students a brief history of the 1980's AIDS epidemic. What was the community's reaction to this then?
4. Then examine a clip from the movie Philadelphia
5. Then examine the video and lyrics to Bruce Springsteen's song "The Streets of Philadelphia":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L9_8vwx2w8
I was bruised and battered and I couldn't tell
what I felt
I was unrecognizable to myself
Saw my reflection in a window I didn't know
my own face
Oh brother are you gonna leave me
wasting away
On the streets of Philadelphia
I walked the avenue till my legs felt like stone
I heard the voices of friends vanished and gone
At night I could hear the blood in my veins
Just as black and whispering as the rain
On the streets of Philadelphia
Ain't no angel gonna greet me
It's just you and I my friend
And my clothes don't fit me no more
I walked a thousand miles
just to slip this skin
The night has fallen, I'm lyin' awake
I can feel myself fading away
So receive me brother with your faithless kiss
or will we leave each other alone like this
On the streets of Philadelphia
6. Discuss how this perspective is different? What makes it different? How did he use the power of music/lyrics/images to change society's perception of the AIDS epidemic at the time? Can you think of other movie soundtracks that might have shed light on important societal issues or changed your perspective of something??
7. Have students create their own poems/lyrics, short essay, or any other form of writing addressing their own view of the problems they see in their daily lives (see #1). After, discuss how our reality might be different from the reality the media portrays? What does this mean when media either constructs or reinforces our beliefs about our world?
adapted from: http://www.vh1.com/partners/vh1_music_studio/supplies/specials/downloads/aids-music-lesson1.pdf
1. Begin with a discussion of problems that teens or adolescents see in their own daily lives. Consider things like peer pressure (alcohol and drug related), teenage sex, conformity, relationships, pressure to do well in school, family and friend issues, etc. Using three of the issues that are most relevant, discuss the ways in which media portrays those issues, both positively AND negatively.
2. Then, hold a brief discussion on some of the larger issues of our society. Consider things like disease epidemics, war, politics, environmental issues, poverty, etc. Then discuss the ways in which the media portrays these issues, both positively and negatively.
3. Give students a brief history of the 1980's AIDS epidemic. What was the community's reaction to this then?
4. Then examine a clip from the movie Philadelphia
5. Then examine the video and lyrics to Bruce Springsteen's song "The Streets of Philadelphia":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L9_8vwx2w8
I was bruised and battered and I couldn't tell
what I felt
I was unrecognizable to myself
Saw my reflection in a window I didn't know
my own face
Oh brother are you gonna leave me
wasting away
On the streets of Philadelphia
I walked the avenue till my legs felt like stone
I heard the voices of friends vanished and gone
At night I could hear the blood in my veins
Just as black and whispering as the rain
On the streets of Philadelphia
Ain't no angel gonna greet me
It's just you and I my friend
And my clothes don't fit me no more
I walked a thousand miles
just to slip this skin
The night has fallen, I'm lyin' awake
I can feel myself fading away
So receive me brother with your faithless kiss
or will we leave each other alone like this
On the streets of Philadelphia
6. Discuss how this perspective is different? What makes it different? How did he use the power of music/lyrics/images to change society's perception of the AIDS epidemic at the time? Can you think of other movie soundtracks that might have shed light on important societal issues or changed your perspective of something??
7. Have students create their own poems/lyrics, short essay, or any other form of writing addressing their own view of the problems they see in their daily lives (see #1). After, discuss how our reality might be different from the reality the media portrays? What does this mean when media either constructs or reinforces our beliefs about our world?
adapted from: http://www.vh1.com/partners/vh1_music_studio/supplies/specials/downloads/aids-music-lesson1.pdf
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Pop Culture Lesson Plans
As educators, obviously one of our goals is to help the literature we teach come alive for our students. I find that students find it difficult to relate to many of the canonical texts we read today because they seem outdated, based on the language and surface plot alone. I think it is important to look beyond the words on the page and help our students make connections with either the language or themes using a common reference point (and a likely point of interest for most students, pop culture).
Activity 1 Rationale:
Because I recently struggled with teaching Shakespeare to a regular English 11 class, I chose to use this activity as a means of helping students connect with the writing styles of Shakespeare and the writing styles of today's hip hop. Additionally, students will be able to make connections between the poetry of Shakespeare's language and the poetry of song lyrics. Finally, it will help them to see the relationship between themes in Shakespeare's writing and time period and similar themes that occur today. Ultimately, this activity can help students see there are reasons we continue to read texts written from hundreds of years ago, not just because they "should" be read, but because they speak to the universal human experience, both in writing styles and in themes.
LESSON PLAN #1: POETRY and SHAKESPEARE
OBJECTIVES:
1. Students will be able to make connections between themes in The Taming of the Shrew and themes in contemporary popular music;
2. Identify the relationship of Shakespeare's writing conventions and music lyrics;
PROCEDURE:
1. Students will have read The Taming of the Shrew using the feminist critical lens. They will already be familiar with how to identify the social commentary being made about a woman's role in society, and what happens when a woman breaks that role.
2. Ask students: How do you definte poetry? Drawing on what you know about song lyrics and about Shakespeare, do you agree that both are forms of poetry? Why or why not?
3. Have students re-read Katherina's final speech from scene 5.2:
KATHARINA: Fie, fie! unknit that threatening unkind brow,
And dart not scornful glances from those eyes,
To wound thy lord, thy king, thy governor: 145
It blots thy beauty as frosts do bite the meads,
Confounds thy fame as whirlwinds shake fair buds,
And in no sense is meet or amiable.
A woman moved is like a fountain troubled,
Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty; 150
And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty
Will deign to sip or touch one drop of it.
Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper,
Thy head, thy sovereign; one that cares for thee,
And for thy maintenance commits his body 155
To painful labour both by sea and land,
To watch the night in storms, the day in cold,
Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe;
And craves no other tribute at thy hands
But love, fair looks and true obedience; 160
Too little payment for so great a debt.
Such duty as the subject owes the prince
Even such a woman oweth to her husband;
And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour,
And not obedient to his honest will, 165
What is she but a foul contending rebel
And graceless traitor to her loving lord?
I am ashamed that women are so simple
To offer war where they should kneel for peace;
Or seek for rule, supremacy and sway, 170
When they are bound to serve, love and obey.
Why are our bodies soft and weak and smooth,
Unapt to toil and trouble in the world,
But that our soft conditions and our hearts
Should well agree with our external parts? 175
Come, come, you froward and unable worms!
My mind hath been as big as one of yours,
My heart as great, my reason haply more,
To bandy word for word and frown for frown;
But now I see our lances are but straws, 180
Our strength as weak, our weakness past compare,
That seeming to be most which we indeed least are.
Then vail your stomachs, for it is no boot,
And place your hands below your husband's foot:
In token of which duty, if he please, 185
My hand is ready; may it do him ease.
4. Ask students if they believe she really is "tamed" or if she is just pretending to know her place in that particular society?
5. Then, in groups, ask students to make connections to a song they know from today. Can they think of a song where women are objectified? Or a song where women challenge this stereotypical role? What do they believe about the role of women in the 21st century? How is this different or similar to the message Shakespeare was making in Taming of the Shrew? How is Katherina's character reinforcing or challenging gender stereotypes? What artists (from Leslie Gore to Lil Kim :)) are commenting on gender roles and how? Why? What does this mean for us as consumers?
(example Alycia Keys, "A Woman's Worth"):
(Verse 2)
If you treat me fairly
I'll give you all my goods...
Treat you like a real woman should
Baby, I know you're worth it
If you never play me
Promise not to bluff
I'll hold you down when it gets rough
'Cause baby, I know you're worth it
(Bridge 2)
She rolls the mile; makes you smile, all the while
being true
Don't take for granted the passions that she has
for you
You will lose, if you choose, to refuse to put her first
She will if she can find a man who knows
her worth!
...OH!
(Chorus)
'Cause a real man knows a real woman when he
sees her (when he sees her)
And a real woman knows a real man
Ain't 'fraid to please her (please me)
And a real woman knows a real man always
comes first (first, baby)
And a real man just can't deny
A woman's worth
[Breakdown]
No need to read between the lines
Spell it out for you (spell it out for you)
Just hear this song
'Cause you can't go wrong when you value(Better value...)
A woman's, woman's, woman's, woman's Worth! (yeah)
[Chorus (x2)]
'Cause a real man knows a real woman when he
sees her (when he sees her[1st time]) (nothin' like a woman's worth [2nd time])
And a real woman knows a real man
Ain't 'fraid to please her (please me [1st time]) (ohhh, ooh [2nd time])
And a real woman knows a real man always
comes first (first, baby [1st time]) (comes first [2nd time])
And a real man just can't deny
A woman's worth (a woman's worth)
6. After each group has selected a song, have them answer the following questions:
- How are the themes of the monologue and the song similar? If not, how are they different?
- What literary devices did the poets use? (Examples include metaphor, simile, alliteration, hyperbole, imagery, rhythm, rhyme, point of view, personification, repetition, etc.)
7. Have each group present their findings to the class using their song.
8. After each group has shared, have them answer the following questions:
- What is the author’s purpose in each of your passages? How do gender and position in society affect the speakers' points of view? What literary devices did the poets use to make their points? Has your definition of poetry changed? How would you define poetry now?
Adapted From:
http://www.folger.edu/eduLesPlanDtl.cfm?lpid=750
Activity #2 Rationale
The purpose of this activity is to help students begin to think critically about a "text" by deconstructing the messages in popular culture today, specifically song lyrics. Like with movies, TV, and news, students might not always be aware of the messages targeted towards them and what affect that has on their lives. This lesson plan is designed to help students become more critically aware of the world around them, and put into question the extent to which their lives influence or are influenced by popular culture today.
OBJECTIVES:
1. Students will be able to identify a theme in a popular music song today
2. Students will be able to dissect that song based on lyrics and images and note the difference between connotation and denotation, intended meaning and implied meaning
LESSON PLAN #2: DECONSTRUCTING LYRICS
1. Have students select a song of their choice, preferably within the last year, and bring in a copy of the lyrics
2. Students will read the lyrics and identify the following:
- What message (theme) is this song sending?
- Who is the intended audience?
- What word choice/sentences reinforce that opinion?
- What is the author's (artist's) tone?
- How can you relate to what is being said?
3. After students have answered the questions, have them watch a music video of the song using YouTube.com or a comparable website/video source.
4. After watching the videos, answer the same questions again, only this time in response to the visual aspect of the song:
- What message (theme) is this song sending through images?
- Who is the intended audience?
- What about this video reinforces that opinion?
- What is the author's (artist's) tone of the video?
- How can you relate to what you see?
5. Then, in their own words, have students identify any conflicting areas between the images and the lyrics. Have students look beyond the words and images they see to identify what sort of message the artist is intentionally trying to send to their audience. What messages are unintentionally being sent? How can you tell?
Activity 1 Rationale:
Because I recently struggled with teaching Shakespeare to a regular English 11 class, I chose to use this activity as a means of helping students connect with the writing styles of Shakespeare and the writing styles of today's hip hop. Additionally, students will be able to make connections between the poetry of Shakespeare's language and the poetry of song lyrics. Finally, it will help them to see the relationship between themes in Shakespeare's writing and time period and similar themes that occur today. Ultimately, this activity can help students see there are reasons we continue to read texts written from hundreds of years ago, not just because they "should" be read, but because they speak to the universal human experience, both in writing styles and in themes.
LESSON PLAN #1: POETRY and SHAKESPEARE
OBJECTIVES:
1. Students will be able to make connections between themes in The Taming of the Shrew and themes in contemporary popular music;
2. Identify the relationship of Shakespeare's writing conventions and music lyrics;
PROCEDURE:
1. Students will have read The Taming of the Shrew using the feminist critical lens. They will already be familiar with how to identify the social commentary being made about a woman's role in society, and what happens when a woman breaks that role.
2. Ask students: How do you definte poetry? Drawing on what you know about song lyrics and about Shakespeare, do you agree that both are forms of poetry? Why or why not?
3. Have students re-read Katherina's final speech from scene 5.2:
KATHARINA: Fie, fie! unknit that threatening unkind brow,
And dart not scornful glances from those eyes,
To wound thy lord, thy king, thy governor: 145
It blots thy beauty as frosts do bite the meads,
Confounds thy fame as whirlwinds shake fair buds,
And in no sense is meet or amiable.
A woman moved is like a fountain troubled,
Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty; 150
And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty
Will deign to sip or touch one drop of it.
Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper,
Thy head, thy sovereign; one that cares for thee,
And for thy maintenance commits his body 155
To painful labour both by sea and land,
To watch the night in storms, the day in cold,
Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe;
And craves no other tribute at thy hands
But love, fair looks and true obedience; 160
Too little payment for so great a debt.
Such duty as the subject owes the prince
Even such a woman oweth to her husband;
And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour,
And not obedient to his honest will, 165
What is she but a foul contending rebel
And graceless traitor to her loving lord?
I am ashamed that women are so simple
To offer war where they should kneel for peace;
Or seek for rule, supremacy and sway, 170
When they are bound to serve, love and obey.
Why are our bodies soft and weak and smooth,
Unapt to toil and trouble in the world,
But that our soft conditions and our hearts
Should well agree with our external parts? 175
Come, come, you froward and unable worms!
My mind hath been as big as one of yours,
My heart as great, my reason haply more,
To bandy word for word and frown for frown;
But now I see our lances are but straws, 180
Our strength as weak, our weakness past compare,
That seeming to be most which we indeed least are.
Then vail your stomachs, for it is no boot,
And place your hands below your husband's foot:
In token of which duty, if he please, 185
My hand is ready; may it do him ease.
4. Ask students if they believe she really is "tamed" or if she is just pretending to know her place in that particular society?
5. Then, in groups, ask students to make connections to a song they know from today. Can they think of a song where women are objectified? Or a song where women challenge this stereotypical role? What do they believe about the role of women in the 21st century? How is this different or similar to the message Shakespeare was making in Taming of the Shrew? How is Katherina's character reinforcing or challenging gender stereotypes? What artists (from Leslie Gore to Lil Kim :)) are commenting on gender roles and how? Why? What does this mean for us as consumers?
(example Alycia Keys, "A Woman's Worth"):
(Verse 2)
If you treat me fairly
I'll give you all my goods...
Treat you like a real woman should
Baby, I know you're worth it
If you never play me
Promise not to bluff
I'll hold you down when it gets rough
'Cause baby, I know you're worth it
(Bridge 2)
She rolls the mile; makes you smile, all the while
being true
Don't take for granted the passions that she has
for you
You will lose, if you choose, to refuse to put her first
She will if she can find a man who knows
her worth!
...OH!
(Chorus)
'Cause a real man knows a real woman when he
sees her (when he sees her)
And a real woman knows a real man
Ain't 'fraid to please her (please me)
And a real woman knows a real man always
comes first (first, baby)
And a real man just can't deny
A woman's worth
[Breakdown]
No need to read between the lines
Spell it out for you (spell it out for you)
Just hear this song
'Cause you can't go wrong when you value(Better value...)
A woman's, woman's, woman's, woman's Worth! (yeah)
[Chorus (x2)]
'Cause a real man knows a real woman when he
sees her (when he sees her[1st time]) (nothin' like a woman's worth [2nd time])
And a real woman knows a real man
Ain't 'fraid to please her (please me [1st time]) (ohhh, ooh [2nd time])
And a real woman knows a real man always
comes first (first, baby [1st time]) (comes first [2nd time])
And a real man just can't deny
A woman's worth (a woman's worth)
6. After each group has selected a song, have them answer the following questions:
- How are the themes of the monologue and the song similar? If not, how are they different?
- What literary devices did the poets use? (Examples include metaphor, simile, alliteration, hyperbole, imagery, rhythm, rhyme, point of view, personification, repetition, etc.)
7. Have each group present their findings to the class using their song.
8. After each group has shared, have them answer the following questions:
- What is the author’s purpose in each of your passages? How do gender and position in society affect the speakers' points of view? What literary devices did the poets use to make their points? Has your definition of poetry changed? How would you define poetry now?
Adapted From:
http://www.folger.edu/eduLesPlanDtl.cfm?lpid=750
Activity #2 Rationale
The purpose of this activity is to help students begin to think critically about a "text" by deconstructing the messages in popular culture today, specifically song lyrics. Like with movies, TV, and news, students might not always be aware of the messages targeted towards them and what affect that has on their lives. This lesson plan is designed to help students become more critically aware of the world around them, and put into question the extent to which their lives influence or are influenced by popular culture today.
OBJECTIVES:
1. Students will be able to identify a theme in a popular music song today
2. Students will be able to dissect that song based on lyrics and images and note the difference between connotation and denotation, intended meaning and implied meaning
LESSON PLAN #2: DECONSTRUCTING LYRICS
1. Have students select a song of their choice, preferably within the last year, and bring in a copy of the lyrics
2. Students will read the lyrics and identify the following:
- What message (theme) is this song sending?
- Who is the intended audience?
- What word choice/sentences reinforce that opinion?
- What is the author's (artist's) tone?
- How can you relate to what is being said?
3. After students have answered the questions, have them watch a music video of the song using YouTube.com or a comparable website/video source.
4. After watching the videos, answer the same questions again, only this time in response to the visual aspect of the song:
- What message (theme) is this song sending through images?
- Who is the intended audience?
- What about this video reinforces that opinion?
- What is the author's (artist's) tone of the video?
- How can you relate to what you see?
5. Then, in their own words, have students identify any conflicting areas between the images and the lyrics. Have students look beyond the words and images they see to identify what sort of message the artist is intentionally trying to send to their audience. What messages are unintentionally being sent? How can you tell?
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Chapter 7.... Politics....
While reading chapter 7, I could help but think about the implications of teaching the "political" message of popular music to our students. Is this something that can really be discussed in the classroom, a supposedly neutral space? While Negus argues that we really shouldn't be looking for the meaning behind any song due to the different ways it was meant to be interpreted, I think that many of my students might struggle with this concept. And while I got to thinking about how I could expand their knowledge, I can say that I'm a little disappointed with the lack of political music that seems to be out there today. The references in the book Negus talks about are songs from extreme cases like Nazi Germany and the Vietnam War. Negus says, "power always arises out of and is exercised through particular struggles and relationships. State attempts to erect cultural boundaries have always been challenged and are becoming ever more difficult to maintain as satellites and computer networks are able to beam images and information rapidly across frontiers without the intervention of border guards and customs officers" (201). While I completely agree with the fact that it is going to be harder today to control music than it was in 1933, I think that in comparison to how politically charged our culture is currently given the circumstances surrounding our last president as well as our new president, shouldn't there be more political messages out there in songs.... ESPECIALLY since it is so hard to control?
The thing I came to realize is that Top 40 hits really can't be political in context. As we realized in chapter three, artists are being sold as an image, and the commercial side of music is well aware of this. Who wants to risk not selling records or worse, be banned (although any exposure is good exposure, right?), by trying to make a statement. What's unfortunate is that popular music is decided by advertisers, marketers, and those with "power." As Negus says, "it is this potential of music that is so often neglected when it is treated simply in terms of aesthetics, commodity form or practical utility and not in terms of its knowledge-producing, transformative and communicative potentials" (222). This statement really stuck out to me in the reading in terms of how this can be applied to the classroom. If we ultimately want our students to grow up to be informed, engaged, critically-aware, educated citizens who are able to question authority and the system, (or in the words of Jack Black, "stick it to the man"), isn't it strange that the people they look up to (oftentimes musicians), aren't really making a stand and doing the same thing? ESPECIALLY when they have the most access to the populace and the greatest ability to be heard and believed? Perhaps it's time to start questioning this, and whether or not the government/commercialized parts of media are directly impacting what we are able to listen to, or if it is a conscious decision on the part of artists and musicians alike.
The one band (hate them or love them), that recently is Green Day. The release of their album " American Idiot" in 2004 sang the progression of a fictional anti-hero, the "Jesus of Suburbia", and his journey through the rise and fall of the American Dream. Their song "Holiday", was supposed to be a commentary on Iraq, according to Rolling Stone Magazine. With lyrics like: "Hear the drum pounding out of time/ Another protester has crossed the line/ To find the money's on the other side/ Can I get another Amen?/There's a flag wrapped around a score of men/ A gag, a plastic bag on a monument/I beg to dream and differ from the hollow lies/This is the dawning of the rest of our lives/On holiday", it's fairly obvious what their political agenda is here. Their newest album, "Breakdown", has a similar message in the song "21st Century Breakdown". They even go so far as to make a not-so subtle hint towards their political lyrics:
Born into Nixon, I was raised in hell.
A welfare child where the teamsters dwell.
The last one born, the first one to run.
My town was blind from the refinery sun [...]
I Praise Liberty
The freedom to obey
It's the song that strangles me
Well, don't cross the line
Dream America, dream.
I can't even sleep.
For your viewing pleasure:
The thing I came to realize is that Top 40 hits really can't be political in context. As we realized in chapter three, artists are being sold as an image, and the commercial side of music is well aware of this. Who wants to risk not selling records or worse, be banned (although any exposure is good exposure, right?), by trying to make a statement. What's unfortunate is that popular music is decided by advertisers, marketers, and those with "power." As Negus says, "it is this potential of music that is so often neglected when it is treated simply in terms of aesthetics, commodity form or practical utility and not in terms of its knowledge-producing, transformative and communicative potentials" (222). This statement really stuck out to me in the reading in terms of how this can be applied to the classroom. If we ultimately want our students to grow up to be informed, engaged, critically-aware, educated citizens who are able to question authority and the system, (or in the words of Jack Black, "stick it to the man"), isn't it strange that the people they look up to (oftentimes musicians), aren't really making a stand and doing the same thing? ESPECIALLY when they have the most access to the populace and the greatest ability to be heard and believed? Perhaps it's time to start questioning this, and whether or not the government/commercialized parts of media are directly impacting what we are able to listen to, or if it is a conscious decision on the part of artists and musicians alike.
The one band (hate them or love them), that recently is Green Day. The release of their album " American Idiot" in 2004 sang the progression of a fictional anti-hero, the "Jesus of Suburbia", and his journey through the rise and fall of the American Dream. Their song "Holiday", was supposed to be a commentary on Iraq, according to Rolling Stone Magazine. With lyrics like: "Hear the drum pounding out of time/ Another protester has crossed the line/ To find the money's on the other side/ Can I get another Amen?/There's a flag wrapped around a score of men/ A gag, a plastic bag on a monument/I beg to dream and differ from the hollow lies/This is the dawning of the rest of our lives/On holiday", it's fairly obvious what their political agenda is here. Their newest album, "Breakdown", has a similar message in the song "21st Century Breakdown". They even go so far as to make a not-so subtle hint towards their political lyrics:
Born into Nixon, I was raised in hell.
A welfare child where the teamsters dwell.
The last one born, the first one to run.
My town was blind from the refinery sun [...]
I Praise Liberty
The freedom to obey
It's the song that strangles me
Well, don't cross the line
Dream America, dream.
I can't even sleep.
For your viewing pleasure:
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Chapter 3, Mediations....
One thing that really interested me about this chapter is the idea how heavily the advertising industry influences the media, particularly radio stations. While I think my choice to listen to stations like The Current (89.3) over KDWB (101.3), reflect my taste in music, the reality is this choice has been pre-determined for me, in order for each station to reach the target audience set up by commercial radio stations who have "carefully market-researched audience groups who are then profiled and presented to the companies who may wish to influence their consumption habits" (81). While public radio stations can be considered the alternative to more popular music radio stations like KDWB, the truth is, the fact that I even listen to the radio at all makes me somebody's target audience. But Nager also brings up another point about who should have the power in this situation, then? "After all," he writes, "if the markets should not decide, who is going to judge what should and should not be played?"( 82). Ultimately this aspect of the chapter brought up many more questions for me than I have the ability or capacity to answer at this point, I think that it's definitely interesting to note the power conflict within something like the music radio industry - something I hadn't thought of before. I'm also very interested to see where this will go in the future. While record stores are very much on the decline with the rise of iTunes and mp3 downloads, we are still very much positioned as consumers when we turn on our computers. Open iTunes store, scroll to "top songs", and it is likely you will see a list of songs ranging from Katy Perry all the way to Soulja Boy. Talk about mass audience appeal...
On that note, I also think it's interesting to note the correlation between the "image" of a song and a target audience. We hear songs literally everywhere we go these days, with each place or situation clearly trying to sell to a target audience. From commercials (Geico versus All State), to movie soundtracks (Breakfast Club to Dangerous Minds), to the crap blaring out of every other store in Mall of America (Abercrombie and Fitch...ahem), to even ringtones (my 5th period classroom), and everywhere we hear them, a certain image comes to mind of a person who would enjoy, consume, or appreciate that music based on what is being sold to me through media representations. What I would argue though, is that the image of the music video isn't nearly as powerful as the image of the artist itself. While MTV, VH1, and even CMT pride themselves on showing the visual representations of the music their audiences listen to, it's rare (unless you're watching between the hours of 2 and 7am) that you will find anything on either channel remotely resembling a music video. So while I can't say I think of the "Lollipop" video everytime I hear the song, I can say that I picture a distinct image of Lil Wayne, and all of the connotations that come along with that. In that sense, I would agree that we can think of artist images, like music videos, as "producing a particular audio-visual agenda for the audiences of a song" (92). And while I wouldn't personally connect with Lil Wayne's
image, there definitely are people out there who would, or who would at least appreciate what he is trying to project. Or what about someone like Susan Boyle? An obviously talented woman voice-wise, she blatantly went against everything the music industry giants regard as what an acceptable image is for someone in the music industry. While at first her story was heart-warming, inspiring even, ultimately, Ms. Boyle was forced to at least attempt to update her clearly out of date, unkempt, lacking appearance. So what will happen now? Is she still going to be regarded as the talented singer she once was? While she's no Britney Spears (but has arguably the better voice), will she still get a record deal? And if she does, will anyone even buy it now that she's being forced to sell herself out to commercialized media? I guess only time will tell.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Teacher Stereotypes....
While I can't say that teacher movies inspired me to join this profession (as the "Education World" article suggests), I can say I am a huge fan of the feel-good, teacher-saves-the-day movie. I bawl like a baby every time the final symphony gets played at the end of Mr. Holland's Opus, again when the inner-city school wins the state choir competition at the end of Sister Act II - thanks to the tireless efforts of Whoppi Goldberg, and then again (embarrassingly enough) when Hillary Swank manages to save a class of 9th graders from a lifetime of oppression and disadvantage by having their diaries published in Freedom Writers. School of Rock, on the other hand, doesn't really fall into the same category as these other films, merely by nature of the teacher and the classroom. Instead of being "agent of social change", the students are more or less the ones who save the teacher, giving a bit of a role reversal from the traditional teacher stereotype we see in Hollywood today.
What is really interesting to me about the use of pop music in his classroom is that he uses it to show the tremendous impact teachers have on students, as the "Education World" article suggests. Not only is he teaching them music skills and knowledge about the history of rock, but he is helping to build their character and self-esteem. Tamisha, the shy backup singer is tranformed into the confident solo singer at the battle of the bands. The piano player is transformed from a nerdy classical-music loving student with no friends to "the bee's knees." Freddy learns to control his temper and channel it into drumming. And Zach learns to "stick it to the man", his dad.The point Mr. Schneebly makes about incorporating popular music into his curriculum is definitley a positive one. However, what I can see is that his experience in the classroom is an atypical one. I spend my time at school wondering how I can get students to even listen to the material being taught, let alone finish their homework. Horace Green Elementary is full of students who, for a variety of intrinsic and extrinsic motivating forces, want to be extremely successful in school. Jack Black uses music because it is what HE knows and loves as a teacher, not because it was a necessity that his students understand rock music. So with an incredibly passionate teacher and with incredibly motivated students, Jack Black's character is ultimately set up for success in his classroom - not likely here in good old Minnesota. Jack Black uses popular music to expose his students to a world they were completely unaware of. In my own classroom, popular music would be used instead because it is more likely they would be engaed with the material if they were able to relate to it on a personal level.
School of Rock may also just be in one of my top 15 favorite movies ever, so perhaps I'm a little biased. But it has definitely been interesting to say the least to view these movies now through a lens of experience. After teaching myself for a whole 11 weeks, I definitely agree that Hollywood has illuminated the teaching profession and life in schools. On the whole, Hollywood has made teaching out to be a profession where they are always successful in the fight against their ofen repressive inner city school students. Freedom Writers, while a tear-jearker, is in my opinion the worst example of teacher stereotypes out there. Hillary Swank, as Shannon and Crawford (1998) suggest, is completely robbed of a life outside of school. She works three jobs on top of her full-time teaching position, and still has time to grade a stack of 120 student papers? But then again, she only teaches one prep and has one class. Teaching is so much more complex and complicated than that. While Jack Black's character isn't one that needs to save his students by providing them with access to a culture/language of power (it is clear they are already getting that at home from their parents), he is "saving" them by giving them a "real-world" education, one that helps students reach their true potential regardless of text books, standardized tests, and the competitive nature of a well-respected, selectd, and highly-esteemed elementary school. He fights against the "constraints" of their obviously privileged background to give them access to a world that, like the typical Hollywood inner-city school student, they wouldn't have had without the help of the teacher. While most media portrayals of teachers use a highly priviledged teacher who helps give students access to knowledge and education, the roles are reversed or at least mutual in School of Rock. The students become more aware of a real-world education, social skills, and seeing more to life than good grades and academic success, while Jack Black is simultaneously transformed from a lazy, selfish, freeloading band member to a bonafied freelance music teacher in the end from what he learned from his students in his ideal clasroom at Horace GReen. Oh, the joys of teaching....
What is really interesting to me about the use of pop music in his classroom is that he uses it to show the tremendous impact teachers have on students, as the "Education World" article suggests. Not only is he teaching them music skills and knowledge about the history of rock, but he is helping to build their character and self-esteem. Tamisha, the shy backup singer is tranformed into the confident solo singer at the battle of the bands. The piano player is transformed from a nerdy classical-music loving student with no friends to "the bee's knees." Freddy learns to control his temper and channel it into drumming. And Zach learns to "stick it to the man", his dad.The point Mr. Schneebly makes about incorporating popular music into his curriculum is definitley a positive one. However, what I can see is that his experience in the classroom is an atypical one. I spend my time at school wondering how I can get students to even listen to the material being taught, let alone finish their homework. Horace Green Elementary is full of students who, for a variety of intrinsic and extrinsic motivating forces, want to be extremely successful in school. Jack Black uses music because it is what HE knows and loves as a teacher, not because it was a necessity that his students understand rock music. So with an incredibly passionate teacher and with incredibly motivated students, Jack Black's character is ultimately set up for success in his classroom - not likely here in good old Minnesota. Jack Black uses popular music to expose his students to a world they were completely unaware of. In my own classroom, popular music would be used instead because it is more likely they would be engaed with the material if they were able to relate to it on a personal level.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
The more things change, the more they stay the same....
I had heard these three songs many times before, but only now really started to think about the lyrics and videos critically. Leslie Gore epitomizes the idea of the female gender role - submissive, helpless, and defined by the man in her life: Johnny (who, on an unrelated note, makes her whiny, materialistic, and completely overly dramatic as well). She is completely powerless (can't do anything about her current situation other than cry about it), and is viewed as little more than the (undesired) object of affection. Initially, I thought of this as a catchy 60's song (and coincidentally the best song from one of my childhood favorites, Problem Child), but it really is so much more than that when you start to look below the surface. What kind of message is being sent with a song like this?
I'd have to admit I feel a bit differently about the "Criminal" video than I do the other two, as I'm not sure it really falls into the same category. As a one-time huge Fiona fan, I've heard "Criminal" about a million times. While that doesn't necessarily make me an expert, I think that this song is definitely more of a personal reflection of her own life than it is a commentary or reflection of the social construction of gender roles. In late middle and high school, I was a huge fan of "angry chick music", that is, Fiona, Tori Amos, Alanis, Liz Phair (whitechocolatespaceegg, NOT the recent stuff), PJ Harvey, Ani Difranco, you name it. Like Fiona, many of these female artists acknowledged sexuality in their songs. I don't think this acknowledgement makes Fiona an object, but is on the contrary rather quite empowering. Apple was sexually abused as a child, and I think that this leads to the disturbing nature of this particular video, not the fact that she is trying to objectify women. While I don't claim to be any sort of feminist at all, I think it is wrong to assume that any sexually submissive woman is trying to be a sex object. Taking the "Criminal" video completely out of context of her background and other songs, it might appear that Fiona Apple is trying to use her sexuality to give her some sort of power that she wouldn't normally have. Instead, I would argue that much of this song is actually quite masculine in nature, "I've been careless with delicate man" is a complete role reversal from Leslie and Johnny! What's unfortunate is that regardless of her intentions, the voyeuristic nature of the video, the random bodies on the floor, the blatant sexual innuendos, and the fact that Apple admits to being a sexual being objectifies women anyway, as demonstrated by this assignment. Women who are sexually compliant are going to be seen as "sluts" by society. That word connotes powerlessness and objectification anyway, and it is inevitable that Fiona's video is also a step backwards for female empowerment. Too bad.
This leads me to the Lil Kim video, which, I have to admit I had heard before but had never actually seen, and was watching this video with my mouth open in awe. Lil Kim, unlike Fiona, is blatantly objectifying women. Yes, she is clearly going a step beyond by explicitly asking for sex instead of just alluding to the fact that it happened, but she is also presenting herself as a mass-produced commodity or plaything (dolls and candy?!) This is seen as female empowerment, and honestly it makes me sick. She claims to be in charge, yet she dressing that way and singing that way for 100% male enjoyment.
As I read over this blog post, I realize I'm not sure what the exact point I'm trying to make is. But I think what we need to be doing with this information as educators is teaching awareness of it to our students. So many of my female students go around singing lyrics to Flo Rida and Britney Spears "All of the boys and all of the girls are begging to if you seek amy." (Seriously, Brit? No one's falling for that) acting like it's cute or something. The thing is, I'm not even sure that they know the implications of that. I also read these same girls' editorials (who all coincidentally choose to write on the same topic) against school dress codes for low cut shirts and short shorts. It breaks my heart when I read them write things like: "unless you can see my butt cheeks, I can wear whatever I want", or "people just shouldn't look at me no matter what I'm wearing." What they don't realize is that they are going to get treated the way they look, which is much older than 16 and 17, and society and pop culture basically justifies that behavior for both the men and women. Not only is it socially acceptable, but almost desirable for these female students to be completely objectified. In that sense, no, we haven't really come that far from Leslie Gore and her cry-baby ways. Women's power is still inevitably coming from the man. I'm not saying we should ban Britney and Flo Rida from our student's iPods, but if nothing else, we should teach pop culture in education so that students can be aware of this hypocrisy, in gender roles and in other groups in society. We need to teach our citizens to be informed, educated, and aware citizens when they leave our classroom. Teaching students to think critically about the information presented to them is a perfect way to do this.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Why Use Pop Music in Education?
"Miss K. I hate Shakespeare. I don't get it."
"This play is stupid, can we please do something else?"
"No I haven't done the reading, Shakespeare sucks."
Ugh. Yet again, another day in 11th grade English. For both teacher and student, lack of motivation in students can be incredibly frustrating. Students don't understand the reading so they don't do it. We don't assign it because they don't understand it. This seems to be a vicious cycle of the English classroom today, that of student engagement and motivation due to lack of understanding. Since so many districts require that certain texts be taught (generally those by dead white guys), what can be done about getting students to comprehend their big ideas, and show them that ideas in Shakespeare, in F. Scott Fitzgerald, in Harper Lee, and John Steinbeck are still completely relevant today and that is why cannonical literature exists?
A solution to making texts relatable is through the use of popular music in the classroom. Cameron White writes, "if we are truly interested in students being motivated to learn and apply this learning to the broader spectrum of social literacy, then we must make stronger efforts at integrating meaningful curriculum and instruction that includes real world connection" (2005). In teaching The Taming of the Shrew this past spring, I was intent on helping my students make meaning and have a real-world connection by teaching it through the feminist lens. This proved to be much more difficult than I thought. We began by examining gender stereotypes in the media and in sports, and talked about gender roles in same-sex classrooms. Still, students weren't making connections to the real world. For them, their "real world" consisted of little more than the 4 walls of AHS. I was thinking students would be engaged by showing clips from Eddie Murphy's 1980's movie Coming to America. Instead, I was constantly confiscating iPods and cellphones in hopes of getting them to pay attention. Despite my best efforts, it was hard to make the ideas of a 16th century play and commentary on gender roles become real for the 70 11th graders in front of me. So why not combine these ideas? Why not take something they love (like music) and use it to our advantage?
And eventually, my efforts paid off. While they may not all remember the names of the characters in Taming of the Shrew, they will more than likely remember our enduring understanding of the social construction of gender. In my experience, most students took more interest in the play when they saw that it was applicable to their lives today. Cameron White writes, "most music genres or individual artists contain examples of songs that contain social commentary or historical references. Many people are under the assumption that social commentary in music reached its peak in the late sixties and early seventies. Punk (Clash, Green Day), Hip Hop (Public Enemy, Eminem) and Grunge (Nirvana, Pearl Jam) are genres from the eighties through today that provide considerable social commentary and historical references. And Pop and Rock (Springsteen, Dylan) still have much to say regarding social issues" (2005). I gave students the task of finding songs in partners that confirmed gender stereotypes and was pleasantly surprised by the discussion that ensued. Students who rarely participate were commenting on the use of negative images of women in songs like Flo Rida's "Get Low" and most other contemporary rap songs. In contrast, others responded with songs like Alicia Keys's "Real Woman." Even still, someone brought up songs like Britney Spears's "Womanizer" that they argued fought gender stereotypes. Other students argued that her appearance/clothing in the video only reinforced the traditional role of women that Shakespeare was fighting against as well. In all, it was fantastic.
The important thing is, as teachers, we should be doing anything we can to get our students to actually retain the information they learn in class, not just memorize it long enough to write a paper or take a test on the material. Unfortunately, this is how most of my own high school experience went. Read, memorize, regurgitate, repeat. As a future English teacher, I'm embarrassed to admit I can't tell you the plot of Death of a Salesman or A Separate Peace, but I can tell you that I remember the day my 10th grade social studies teacher brought in Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth" to teach us about Vietnam. To this day, I can literally picture his classroom and the passion he had teaching the subject. Don't we want this passion to rub off on our students too? The point is, as English teachers, we are in the unique position of being able to teach our students about big ideas and concepts, and not just the facts of a book. By helping students engage in a text not just for the words on the page but for the social commentary or overarching theme of power struggles, identity, death, gender, race, poverty, etc., we can not only afford the opportunity for engagement and motivation, but hopefully for a love of learning as well. If students are invested in a text because they find it interesting AND entertaining, what more could we ask for? After all, if we can get students to become critical thinkers, make meaning of the world around them, question the actions of society, and hopefully bring about some sort of societal change, aren't we doing our job. Music in education provides an outlet for all of these goals. Above all, promotes active learning because students are less likely to get frustrated and disengaged with a text if they are actually able to find a text understandable and relatable. There is a reason certain texts have been around for 500 years, and there are reasons the same texts are required in most school districts to this day. As English teachers, it is our job to help our students understand why, to make these texts accessible to a contemporary audience, and help young readers get beyond difficult language to the big idea and societal commentary behind most of those books. I believe pop music is the perfect way to do so.
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