Harper Lee’s classic novel To Kill A Mockingbird presents many important messages. One key theme of the book is that of the discrimination of races. Set in the 1930’s in Maycomb County, Alabama, African Americans are mistreated constantly and face hate on a regular basis. Atticus Finch, a white lawyer, is assigned to defend Tom Robinson, a black man, in the court of law under the accusations that Tom raped a white woman. Because of the setting and time period, much of the Maycomb townsfolk oppose Atticus’s decision to defend an African American, sparking conflict.
In singer Marvin Gaye’s classic song “What’s Going On”, there is a clear message that resonates well with the situation in To Kill A Mockingbird. He sings: “Father, father, everybody thinks we're wrong. Oh, but who are they to judge us, simply because our hair is long. Oh, you know we've got to find a way, to bring some understanding here today”. Tom Robinson and the African American community of Maycomb County can relate to these words very well. They are judged on a daily basis, simply because they are black and, as seen in the trial, everybody (the white men and women) thinks that Tom Robinson is wrong. Atticus, representing Tom, aims to create an understanding amongst the court house that just because Tom is black does not mean that he committed the crime. “What’s Going On” emphasizes a message of equality among people, just as Atticus does in To Kill A Mockingbird.
Wow! Major props on connecting To Kill A Mockingbird with a Marvin Gaye tune. I set my blog post to a similar tune as I also talked about the discrimination of races and how it effects everyone. The excerpt you used from the song could not be more on point with what was going on in the book. Great post, great song choice.
ReplyDeleteI think that your musical connection is really good. I have never heard that song before, and when you made that connection I could see it right away. I think that you related to the story very well, I think that there actually are a lot of songs that you could connect to the story because so many songs deal with discrimination.
ReplyDeleteGood job. I love the song "Whats Going On". It was ranked number 2 on Rolling Stone's top 500 song list. Anyway, I think that it was good how you connected the two things, and I have noticed that Tom Robinson is a very common link between the music and the book.
ReplyDeleteI never heard of that song, However after reading this it makes me want to look at it. I can see why you pick this song in relevance to Tom Robinson's court case. I think you can probably relate this song maybe to the kids who calls out Atticus with racial slurs.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very good musical connection. You picked a very good song in terms of directly relating to the book with very similar themes, and you did a very good job of putting correct examples into the post. Great post.
ReplyDeleteYour response to the blog assignment was very clear and well written. You addressed a very important theme that occurs in the book. Your song is very relevant to the events in the book. You had a good song choice that clearly illustrates how Tom Robinson is judged and treated unfairly.
ReplyDeleteGreat job with this post. I would have never thought to connect it to a song like this. This song represents To Kill A mockingbird very well and the lyrics seem like they could be about to Kill A Mockingbird. Good job
ReplyDeleteBennett- Good job dude! Marvin Gaye is a classic artist, and this is a classic book. I am impressed because this is not a song very well known by kids today, and this was a good connection. The portion of the song you chose was on point!
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