Prompt 3: Conflict is never fair.
Songs about war
'But Vietnam was not just a war: it was the epicentre of the national conversation during the second half of the 1960s, an unparalled magnet for dissent.' - Dorian Lynskey, 33 Revolutions per Minute
The Vietnam War: 1954 - 1975
'The Vietnam War was a long, costly armed conflict that pitted the communist regime of North Vietnam and its southern allies, known as the Viet Cong, against South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. The divisive war, increasingly unpopular at home, ended with the withdrawal of U.S. forces in 1973 and the unification of Vietnam under Communist control two years later. More than 3 million people, including 58,000 Americans, were killed in the conflict.
The movement against U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War began small –among peace activists and leftist intellectuals on college campuses – but gained national prominence in 1965, after the United States began bombing North Vietnam in earnest. Anti-war marches and other protests, such as the ones organised by Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), attracted a widening base of support over the next three years, peaking in early 1968 after the successful Tet Offensive by North Vietnamese troops proved that war’s end was nowhere in sight.
The anti-war movement began mostly on college campuses, as members of the leftist organisation Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) began organising “teach-ins” to express their opposition to the way in which it was being conducted. Though the vast majority of the American population still supported the administration policy in Vietnam, a small but outspoken liberal minority was making its voice heard by the end of 1965. This minority included many students as well as prominent artists and intellectuals and members of the hippie movement, a growing number of young people who rejected authority and embraced the drug culture.'
Source: http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war
http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-history/pictures/vietnam-anti-war-protests
'Masters of War'
'This song is a sort of striking out, a reaction to the last straw, a feeling of what can you do?' - Bob Dylan 'Masters of War' written in 1963 by Bob Dylan is about the military-industrial complex that profits from war. According to Dylan it is not an anti-war song. To use Dylan's own words it is a 'finger-pointing song'. Come you masters of war
You that build all the guns You that build the death planes You that build the big bombs You that hide behind walls You that hide behind desks I just want you to know I can see through your masks You that never done nothin’ But build to destroy You play with my world Like it’s your little toy You put a gun in my hand And you hide from my eyes And you turn and run farther When the fast bullets fly 'War'
War, huh yeah
What is it good for? Absolutely nothing, oh hoh, oh War huh yeah What is it good for? Absolutely nothing, say it again y'all War, huh good God What is it good for? Absolutely nothing, listen to me 'Ohio' 'Ohio' is a protest song written and composed by Neil Young in reaction to the Kent State shootings of May 4, 1970, and performed by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Tin soldiers and Nixon coming,
We're finally on our own. This summer I hear the drumming, Four dead in Ohio. Gotta get down to it Soldiers are cutting us down Should have been done long ago. What if you knew her And found her dead on the ground How can you run when you know? Gotta get down to it Soldiers are cutting us down Should have been done long ago. What if you knew her And found her dead on the ground How can you run when you know? Tin soldiers and Nixon coming, We're finally on our own. This summer I hear the drumming, Four dead in Ohio. http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/0504.html 'The Star Spangled Banner'
'...the most eloquent instrumental protest song rock has ever produced. Hendrix didn't so much cover the national anthem as napalm it...' - Dorian Lynskey At Woodstock, Jimi Hendrix reinvented the American National Anthem as a showcase for what could be done with extreme, high-volume electric guitar distortion, his riffs often interpreted as mimicking weapons explosions and bombs dropping from the sky. He imitated the fire of guns, the dropping of bombs and flying rockets within his guitar work, criticising the politics and condemning the Vietnam War. 'The war in Vietnam was noisy, mechanised, hallucinatory, chaotic - qualities which Hendrix understood...' Dorian Lynskey 'I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin-to-Die-Rag' 'What's almost unfathomable is the smallness of it.' - Country Joe McDonald 'I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin-to-Die-Rag' by Country Joe McDonald and The Fish is an anti-Vietnam War protest song. The song sarcastically diagnoses the issues surrounding the war. He examines the beneficial economic aspect of the Vietnam War, the overzealous use of aggression by war generals, and how Americans were just expected to accept the drafting of their sons. The song despite being uptempo illustrates the hopelessness many Americans felt toward the Vietnam War. And it's one, two, three,
What are we fighting for ? Don't ask me, I don't give a damn, Next stop is Vietnam; And it's five, six, seven, Open up the pearly gates, Well there ain't no time to wonder why, Whoopee! we're all gonna die. 'The person singing the song is not apologising for anything, he's not saying anything about world peace, he's not saying he feels bad about killing people. It's sarcastic about killing people. And this was a time when people in the peace movement were blaming soldiers for war.' - Country Joe McDonald So what could you write about? The possibilities are endless. Keep in mind that you do not have to write about the Vietnam War or military warfare. Conflict is everywhere in society. It is an essential aspect of people living together in communities - a natural outcome of human interactions. When conflict escalates it may lead to volatile situations and destructive outcomes. Why not use a song title as a title for your own piece of writing? For example: 'War. What is it good for?' or 'Imagine'. A response titled 'War. What is it good for?' will no doubt be a rhetorical response addressing the injustice of war. A response titled 'Imagine' may be a modern day call for an end to the many injustices (or even an injustice) of contemporary society in order to create a fairer world. Perhaps you could take a stance that challenges the notion of protest. Why not write an opinion piece that contends that in times of conflict we need patriotism rather than protest. You may choose to write in an imaginative way (after completing further research), adopting the persona of a soldier or a veteran of war or a student participating in the anti-Vietnam rallies. You could talk to an older relative about their experiences of war or about their memories of Australia's Moratorium Movement in the 1970s. |
'Eve of Destruction'
'Eve of Destruction is a protest song written by P. F. Sloan in 1965. Several artists have recorded it, but the best-known recording was by Barry McGuire. The song was banned from many radio stations for its anti-government lyrics, but still managed to hit #1 in the US. The song takes on racism, hypocrisy and injustice. The Kennedy assassination was an influence on the song. The song galvanised the debate over voting rights in America, since in many states citizens could not vote until they were 21. During the Vietnam War, support to lower the voting age grew, as so many young people were sent to war but denied participation in the political process. In 1971, the US Constitution was amended, lowering the voting age to 18. The left-wing folk establishment disliked the song believing it 'plasticised' protest'. The eastern world, it is exploding Violence flarin', bullets loadin' You're old enough to kill, but not for votin' You don't believe in war, but what's that gun you're totin' And even the Jordan River has bodies floatin' But you tell me Over and over and over again, my friend Ah, you don't believe We're on the eve of destruction. 'Unknown Soldier'
The song was Jim Morrison's reaction to the Vietnam War and the way that conflict was portrayed in American media at the time. Lines such as "Breakfast where the news is read/ Television children fed/ Unborn living, living dead/ Bullets strike the helmet's head" concern the way news of the war was being presented in the living rooms of ordinary people. 'I Was Only Nineteen' 'I Was Only Nineteen' (or 'A Walk Through The Green Light') was released as a single by the Australian band Redgum in 1983. The song gives an account of the experiences of a soldier fighting for Australia in the Vietnam War. And can you tell me, doctor, why I still can't get to sleep?
And night time's just a jungle dark and a barking M.16? And what's this rash that comes and goes, can you tell me what it means? God help me - I was only nineteen 'Born in the U.S.A.' Springsteen wrote 'Born in the U.S.A. about the problems Vietnam veterans encountered when they returned to America. Vietnam was the first war that America did not win. While veterans of other wars received a hero's welcome, those who fought in Vietnam were mostly ignored when they returned home. The song's original title was 'Vietnam'. Born in the U.S.A., I was born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A., born in the U.S.A. Got in a little hometown jam So they put a rifle in my hand Sent me off to a foreign land To go and kill the yellow man Born in the U.S.A., I was born in the U.S.A. Born in the U.S.A., born in the U.S.A. The voice of the patriot
'The Ballad of the Green Berets' 'The Ballad of the Green Berets' is a patriotic song in the ballad style about the Green Berets, an elite special force in the U.S. Army. It is one of the very few songs of the 1960s to cast the military in a positive light and in 1966 it became a major hit, reaching No. 1 for five weeks. Back at home a young wife waits Her Green Beret has met his fate He has died for those oppressed Leaving her this last request Put silver wings on my son's chest Make him one of America's best He'll be a man they'll test one day Have him win the Green Beret And a song about peace
'Imagine' You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one I hope someday you'll join us And the world will be as one Imagine no possessions I wonder if you can No need for greed or hunger A brotherhood of man Imagine all the people Sharing all the world... |