America

(http://www.amwest-travel.com/awt_denali.html)

To me this picture represents America because in it you see wide open space. A place that hasn't been tamed by man. It reminds me of what people might have seen in the beginning of this country which wasn't anything more than a landscape. To me this picture just screams FREEDOM, which is probable the biggest idea I think of when asked about America. The only way this picture could say America more to me is if it had an American Eagle flying in it. I think the American Eagle is a really majestic animal and since it it our national bird I think it fits. So, this is my picture to represent American landscape when I think of it as a whole. Hope you find it as beautiful as I do.

Mayflower question 15

Question 15. I kind of agree with the person who stated that. I mean Philbrick kind of tells it from a Pilgrim perspective in that he follows them from Europe to America, but I don't think that he tells about the struggles with a preference from one group to another. I think that his goal was to tell the story of the Pilgrims from a realistic point of view giving clear descriptions of what really happened. Not that one group was right or wrong or that one group was greater than the other. It was just what it was.

Questions 11 and 12

Question 11. I think that the natives that took side with the English were sensible. The tribes that joined them had nothing against the English and had always been in good standing with them. Plus, I think that each tribe considered themselves so unique and their own persons that they didn't really think of it as fighting against their own. If I were a native it would have depended on what tribe I was in on whether or not I sided with the English. If I were in a tribe that had always had good relations with the English and considered them trustworthy people I see no reason why I wouldn't have joined them in the fight. However, had I been in a tribe that had constantly bickered and argued with the English I probably would have fought against them.



Question 12. I don't think that either side in King Phillip's War could claim moral superiority. In mind both sides did things that were despicable. I have no idea how the English could find it biblically justifiable to publicly display a chopped off head. On the natives side they didn't really have a bible or such document to go by God's standards, but I think that just by your conscience and moral ethics they should have realized that some of the things they did were gruesome. So, I don't think that either side had a claim to moral superiority.

Mayflower Questions 9 and 10

Question 9. I think the character that emerged as a hero to me in King Phillip's War was Benjamin Church. Church came across as a very put together man, who carefully thought through his actions. He also stuck with his gut, which saved his wife and children's lives at one point. Another thing that Church had was his strategic planning. Church looked at the Indians and their tactics in a completely different light than his colleagues. When he offered his ideas on how to help, that were often shot down on more than one occasion, the outcome showed that had the elders listened to Church they would have been better off. Especially with what Church accomplished towards the end of the war, I think he was invaluable to the Pilgrims.

Question 10. Grouping the Indians together as one complicated the war because there were many Indians that had wanted to stay neutral. By the Pilgrims grouping all the Indians together as one unit, they shot themselves in the foot. Not only did they turn many Indian groups against them, they failed to keep their minds open to negotiations. I'm sure that if the Pilgrims had approached some of the Indian tribes they attacked they could have prevented many dead. By being unwilling to talk to Indians they also confused many of the surrounding Indian tribes. Tribes that thought they were on the Pilgrims side suddenly found them attacking their homes and lives, and that confused them. If you look at the Praying Indians who had always been with the Pilgrims, they were suddenly considered suspicious and banned for a while. So, had the Pilgrims been more careful and maybe even a little thoughtful of what they were doing, they would have had less heartache.

Questions 6 and 8

Question 6. I think the Pilgrims children earned their bad rep from the way the handled things. For one thing they didn't appear grateful for what their parents had done, and they became selfish wanting more than what was needed (like land). So, I think that in a way their title was deserved, however I also think that the elders who would have given them this title weren't ready to see things change. The younger Pilgrims were not as strict in religious matters as their parents had been and that deeply worried the older generation. So, they were kind of labeled as being a little rebellious. I think that the denunciations of the second generation were kind of a self fullfilling prophesy because they say that the power of life and death is in the tongue. (biblical principal) So, if you speak that your children are going to fall into ruins because of the things that they are doing then they will. So, in part what happened to the Pilgrims was because they had spoken that's what was going to happen.

Question 8. In movies natives are always portrayed as being extremely violent and heathen, but they aren't. Natives have a way of living that is difficult for others to understand, that doesn't make it wrong or right. It just means that it's different. In the Mayflower we learn that the natives were willing to make peace with Pilgrims and to live side by side and at times help each other. We also learn that most of the natives at the end hadn't actually wanted to become involved in the war, and had wished to stay neutral. However, some of the images that we see today do seem to portray the natives in the Pilgrims time. In the book there were many instances in which the natives had scalped the Pilgrims after burning houses. This is still something that is commonly placed with natives today. Another thing that the Mayflower shows is the natives fascinating ability to pick up and move and thrive in another area. The natives never had permanent housing, so they could easily pick up and leave- something that would become very useful. Another things that Mayflower shows is that natives are a community like group, you wouldn't find just one Indian. They lived,worked, and thrived together. That also applied to when they were in war. The Indians did extremely well because they stayed together.

Mayflower Questions 4 and 5

Question 4. I think there are two factors for the fall of the Pilgrims peaceful coexistence with the Indian. One- the main sachem that the Pilgrims had worked and talked to was no longer in power, and that his son had taken rein. Number two- by 1670 Plymouth and surrounding areas was becoming second generation citizens, and proposals and arrangements and faithfulness that their parents had had was quickly forgotten and overlooked. I think that while war with the Indians may not have been completely avoidable. I think that the scale and reasons could have been avoided. If the Pilgrims would have been less selfish with wanting land and remembered the relationships their parents had built with the Indians they could have avoided some major issues.

Question 5. Squanto made such a difference in history because he was really smart. He knew what cards he had in his hand and he knew how to play them to the fullest of his ability. Squanto had the upper hand on almost everybody from the beginning by being both fluent in English and the Native tongue. He also had goals that he was focused on accomplishing, and although he never accomplished what he originally had planned. He still made quite a mess. Squanto had also been to Europe, which made his knowledge of the Pilgrims far superior to that of the local sachem. However, Squanto had grown suspicious among the natives which in the end would hinder him a great deal.

Mayflower Questions 1 and 3

Question 1. I think that the pilgrims strong religious beliefs were the main factor in their survival as a group. Through their religious beliefs the pilgrims believed that they were there for a purpose and that God's will would be done. So, I think that in hard times they were able to fall back on that to help them push on. However, I think that at times their religious beliefs hindered them in survival. Because the pilgrims were so unwilling to look or listen to anything that wasn't strictly biblical they missed a lot of opportunities to learn from other people. I'm sure that the Indians could have taught them many lessons on survival in the Americas, but because the Indians weren't as biblical as they were they overlooked some things that they did.



Question 3. I think that America made pilgrims and their situation more of a fantasy because that's what they wanted to hear. Nobody really wants to believe that the Pilgrims had it rough when they came over, or that Thanksgiving wasn't a party. People want to believe that the Pilgrims came over and life fell into place for them. I also think that Pilgrim fantasy that we know today is somewhat encouraging. I mean as little kids in the 1st grade we are told this fantasy story of the Pilgrims, and they became the coolest people ever. We didn't want to know the struggles and hardships that they actually went through, and for the most part people still don't.

Songs 14 and 15 ( Last Two!!)

The Hands That Built America by U2

This song was written in 2002. This song talks about all the different people that have built America. The song is unusually written because of all of the people that the song mentions in the building of America the way it's written it sounds like anyone of those people could have written it. In the songs chorus there is a person who whispers several different ethnicity's involvement in helping build America. (Polish, Irish, German, Italian, Russian, Sioux, Dutch, Hindu, Blacks, Chinese, Jews, Korean, Hispanic, Muslim, Indian. ) So, the ways the song is written it sounds like anyone one of these people could be singing it, but not only that- the songs' lyrics make it sound like it was written in the beginning of America. The first time I heard this song I just kind of overlooked it, but after listening to it a few more times I began to really enjoy it. It has a really cool sound to it, kind of simple. Before the versus start the beginning reminds me of a song of the Planet Earth soundtrack. This song made me look at America and realize that it literally did take all kinds of people to build America. It took a little bit of this and that from everywhere to come up with what we have now, and that's something that no other country has come close to. I can imagine that when some people hear this song they would become offended that so many different ethnicity's are mentioned when it was the Europeans who settled America, but without the influences of all the other nationalities we might not even exist in the same way we do today.

We Didn't Start The Fire by Billy Joel

This song was written in 1989. This song talks about all of the things that happened from the 1940's up until 1989. Highlighting things from Hula Hoops, Disneyland, and a major homicide case. There are so many things that this song covers that somebody could probable write a book on this song. This song is one of the weirdest songs as far as composition goes because in the versus it doesn't appear that anybody imparticular is talking, it's just somebody listing a bunch of stuff. However, in the chorus the writer uses the words "We" in which it is believed refers to the Baby Boomer generation. Well, the last song on the CD is definitely a hit on my list. Even though all of the things in this song happened before I was even born it's a really cool song. It has a really fun rhythm to it, and is incredibly fun to sing to. ( Even though you have to have the lyrics in front of you and even then I still mess up! :P) This song allows you to learn about so many things that happened in US history. I mean I could probable take a week and look up and learn about all of the instances Billy Joel refers to. However, when I was listening to it, while doing this post I though that it was interesting that he mention the Starkwheather homicide. Mainly because I figured that that most of been on heck an investigation for it to have been mentioned in a song like this. So, I looked it up and read that Charles Starkwheather had killed 11 people! So, that's what I learned about US history through this song.

Songs 12 and 13

Youngstown by Bruce Springsteen

Youngstown was written in 1995. The song is about the town Youngstown, Ohio and how during war times the town helped produce materials to help the armies. However, after war times many people had a hard time staying a float. The story is written like a citizen of Youngstown was recording things that had happened in his life and what happened to the town. The way that Springsteen sings the songs you would have thought that he himself had lived in Youngstown and suffered through the instances that were written about. I agree with Anna in that this song is difficult to understand, and even though I don't understand all the references to the steel,furnaces, etc, I like the song. I thought that Springsteen did a great job showing emotion. Through this song I was able to learn a little bit about the town Youngstown number one and then about how war affects certain towns more than others, especially the work force in a town. In this song it seems that the things the person in the song has gone through has scarred him for life, since how in the end he says he would rather go to hell than heaven.

The Times They Are A-Changin' by Bob Dylan

This song was written in 1964. This songs talks about how things are changin. How there are new ideas that are appearing in the world and that older people have got to look to the new ideas and go with it, because if they don't they'll get trapped in the past and not move forward. The story seems to be Bob Dylan's' actual opinion of what is going on in the world. So, it seems to be more of a primary source than some of the other songs. I did not like this songs. The way it sounds isn't the kind of music that I like to listen to and I found the context of the song to be confusing. ( Thanks to Anna and Alexis for your help! :) This song does make me think though of how when new ideas arise it must take the rest of the world by shock, because people get so stuck with what they know that they forget how to take in new things. So, it made me think of how people must have responded to new things and ideas when they happened like the trip to the moon, or the atomic bomb, or even something like a TV.

Songs 10 and 11

Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday

Strange Fruit was written sometime in the 1930's by a New York school teacher name Abel Meeropol. The song talks about lynching in the south. It particularly talks about the lynching of "black bodies" which would be African Americans. The song doesn't give a descriptive definition of a lynching itself but more of seeing a hanging body in a tree. This song was originally a poem that was later put to music. The song sounds almost like a documentation. The way it is song makes it sound like someone from a different area came to the south and say a body in a tree and wrote about it in a journal. Although this song is kind of creepy when you think exactly about what topic is being sung about, I liked the song. It has a mysterious and eerie sound to it that I thought Billie Holiday's voice fit perfectly. If anybody has heard the song "I'll Be Seeing You" and heard Billie Holiday's rendition of it her voice sounds so unique that it changes the mood of a song (at least for me). Although I had learned about lynching last year, the way this song portrayed lynching was a different point of view for me. The last stanza of the song where the writer says "Here is fruit for the crows to pluck" made me think of how inhumane lynching seems to have been. Whether those people deserved to die or not it seems really inhumane to have been killed in such a way.

A Change Is Gonna Come by Seal

A Change Is Gonna Come was written in 1964. The song talks about how a change will come concerning racism. The song is told by a man who has had a hard time throughout his life because of racism, but believes that one day it will change. So, the songs is written such that you would believe that the person who had written it had gone through these experiences himself. I liked this song a lot. I thought that the instruments in the background were done really nicely, and that it had a great flow to it. It wasn't until I looked up the lyrics and thought about it that I really understood what kind of a "change" the writer was looking for, but after I figured out that it made more sense. I think the writer was brave for having written this song, because I'm sure there have been many people who have felt racial oppression but haven't been bold enough to say or write anything about it. So, that this man was brave enough to have written his feelings down and had his song recorded seems like quite an accomplishment to me. This song doesn't talk about any particular event in America other than that there was racial oppression at the time but what was written in the view of someone undergoing racial oppression which gave me a new perspective on what people must have gone through and how hard it had to have been for them.

Songs 8 and 9

Jesus Christ by Woodie Guthrie

Jesus Christ was written in 1940 by Woodie Guthrie. The song talks about Jesus going through the land preaching to the wealthy about giving their goods to the poor, and when the wealthy refuse they put Jesus death. This song actually seems to depict how Jesus really was, Guthrie says that he was a good man and that he was originally a Carpenter. The song is written like it is flopping back and forth from when Jesus actually lived to present day. The song talks about Jesus like he lived, but uses current day people like Cops and Sheriffs as the bad guy. Then though the writer says that it was written in NY City and that if Jesus preached there like he had preached in Galilee he would be put to death, so it's kind of confusing. As far as my opinion of the song, it was my least favorite of the fifteen. The way it sounds reminds me of a couple of guys sitting on a porch in the woods goofing off. The lyrics were okay, I just didn't like the execution. It made me realize that had Jesus been around in the US today that there probable wouldn't have been many people to accept his message, even back in the forties. If this was written in the forties, then people back then must have some of the same attitudes that people today have. It made me realize how closed our society is and must have been back then to completely new ideas, especially ideas that require faith. Faith meaning you just have to trust, and sometimes you won't always be able to have or know the answer.

Do Re Mi by Ani DiFranco

Do Re Mi was written in 1940. This song was originally written by Woodie Guthrie about the Dust Bowl in the 1930's. During the Dust Bowl there were a lot of states affected in crops, etc and people were trying to get to California to get out of the drought which had turned the plains into dust bowls. In the song they repeatedly say that if you don't have the "do re mi" then to stay where you are, and by "do re mi" they mean money. The song when listened to sounds like a warning from an individual who tried to escape the dust bowl and didn't have any luck. I personally like this song. I thought that the tune, beat and sound was upbeat and fun to listen to. It was one of the songs on the CD that I found getting stuck in my head. What did this allow me to learn about US history? Well, I actually had no idea that anything like the Dust Bowl had ever happened. So, by listening to this song and doing a little research about it, I was able to learn about the Dust Bowl in the 1930's.

Songs 6 and 7

Hard Times Come Again No More

Hard Times Come Again No More was written in 1854. The songs seems to be literally about "hard times" that people go through, especially those who are poorer and dealing with them. Because this song was originally done in 1854, it appears to have been written by someone who was able to closely observe "hard times". Whether he went through them himself or just closely observed I'm not sure. The song seems to paint a vivid portrait of what the poor were going through, since the writer used a lot of adjectives. I thought this song was okay, I thought that the recording artists did a really good job of sound sad, like it seemed like she was actually in the situation that the lyrics portrayed. I think this song helped to show me what was going on in the US around 1854. There must have been difficult things happening for someone to have sat down and written such a sad song. And I know that the song says that hard times will come again no more, but it didn't feel like they believed that they way it was sung. It sounds more like their destined for doom than for better things to come.

Paddy's Lament by Sinead O' Connor

Paddy's Lament was written in 2002. The song tells about an Irish person named Paddy telling of how he immigrates to America because of hard times in Ireland. Paddy then tells that once he arrived to America he was forced to start fighting in the American war. Throughout the song Paddy tells"boys" back in Ireland to stay in Ireland because the only thing happening in America is war and that he wished he could come back home to Ireland. The story is told from Paddy's point of view. The song is written such that it sounds like a letter that Paddy would have sent back home to the "boys" in Ireland. First let me say that when I saw we had a song from Sinead O' Connor I was super excited because I love her song Nothing Compares 2 U. However, when I first heard this song I was little confused and didn't understand until I had looked up the lyrics. That being said, once I understood the song I liked it. Although the song isn't written from an American standpoint, it made me think of how other countries feel when we are in war. Especially when America was younger and a lot of immigrants came over for a better life,( not that there are not immigrants like that now), and were immediately expected to help and understand what struggles America was going through.

Songs 4 and 5

Brave Wolfe by Mark O' Connor & Wynton Marsalis

The songs Brave Wolfe was recorded in 1997 by Mark O' Connor and Wynton Marsalis for the album Liberty!. The song is an old traditional ballad that pays respect to the British General James Wolfe who died in 1759. Since, it is a song done completely through instruments without any vocals I think that the artists tried to interpret a story that was told through in an older version of this song. I personally really enjoyed this song, I thought that it sounded beautiful and that it was a very respectful way to honor somebody. I don't know that this song allowed me to learn anything specific about the history of the US because the song really isn't about the US. However, it makes you realize that there are people in the US who are interested in researching past events through music.

Johnny Has Gone for a Soldier by Mark O' Connor and James Taylor

Johnny Has Gone for a Soldier is an American folk song that dates to the American Revolution. The song tells about a guy (assuming him to be young) name Johnny that leaves his love to go fight as a soldier and how the young woman is heartbroken to see him go. In this version of Johnny Has Gone for a Soldier James Taylor sings it like he is telling a story. However, in other versions of the song it is song in first person, in which, it would be more like the singer is living through the situation. The is one of the songs that I really like on the CD, however I find extremely sad. To me it sounds like something you would see in a movie. I thought that the arrangement was very complimentary to the era and circumstance they were trying to represent. For me I learned about some of the things that people went through during a war time. In the song it says that his love had to sell her possessions to buy him a "sword of steel" so it was obviously a financial struggle for some people.

Songs 1-3

Anon: Virgen Madre De Dios

Apache Indian Drums

Shaman's Call

I think that the recording artists of these songs were probably trying to shed some light into what culture looked like before America was settled by Europeans. Many people look at the beginning of American as when the Europeans first showed up on the Eastern shores, but we have to remind ourselves that there was history, culture, and life in America before the Europeans came in and "settled" America. I think that these songs highlight the time and culture before the Europeans showed up, especially the songs Apache Indian Drums and Shaman's Call which seem to represent Native American culture. In which light I think they are very much part of the American story. Like I previously stated I think most people look at the beginning of America as when the Europeans showed up, but America had many thriving inhabitants before then so I think it is important to consider those people and their culture and experiences as part of the early American story.