Look carefully at the lyrics of this song. Why choose this song for what is basically a political musical? Draw connections to deeper meanings.
Courier:
Momma, hey momma, come lookin' for me
I'm here in the meadow by the red maple tree
Momma, hey momma, look sharp, here I be
Hey, hey, momma look sharp
Them soldiers, they fired.
Oh ma, did we run
But then we turned round and the battle begun
Then I went under, oh ma, am I done?
Hey, hey, momma look sharp
My eyes are wide open, my face to the sky
Is that you I'm hearin' in the tall grass nearby?
Momma come find me before I do die
Hey, hey, momma look sharp
All:
I'll close your eyes, my Billy
Them eyes that cannot see
And I'll bury you, my Billy
Beneath the maple tree
Courier:
And never again will you whisper to me
Hey, hey, momma look sharp
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9 comments:
I can totally see this song as a propaganda tool for the collonists. The song itself is about a boy who is shot and killed. In the song he is calling for his mother, which is a sign of inocence and youth. The youthful part would show the British as merciless. Perhaps the line, "Oh ma, we did run" shows that the boy was not necessarily a soldier and there fore an inocnet civilian. The mother's sorrowful conclusion to this song would be a rallying point for parents who would do anything not to feel the same level of loss. I can totally see this song inspiring a certain level of hatred and anger towards the British.
The revolution consisted of two parts, the war and the politics. You can't learn about one without understanding the other. While the congress, a group of thirty middle-aged men, argue about whether or not to declare independence, teenagers are fighting for their homes and being killed. The song gives a good contrasting view of the war.
it seems as if the song was meant to get people to fight against the British because they were killing the citizens. the boy is used as a tool to pick at peoples emotions, so that there was a reason to gain independence over the British.
It like many songs that were written threw various wars, are propaganda tools. A mother's tenderness and love is something everyone can recognize, not only in this war but in many of the others to come. You can find examples of mothers love and a son who was shot. For example "Who'll Tell His Mother" a civil war song about a boy whose died and who gets the responsibility of telling the mother her son is dead. No one wants that responsibility. Mothers and fathers would hate to find that out, and younger siblings to finding out there siblings are dead would then fuel there own hatred and wanting to go out and get vengeance for there dead siblings.
As everyone else has mentioned, this is just one use of propaganda used to get people to fight. It uses that of a young boy, shot and killed during battle whether he was fighting or not. Either way, it is still sad. Then, using the grief of a loving, caring, undeserving mother just continues to elevate the hostility towards the British.
Yeah they definitely do a good job of making the British seem evil. It seems as if all of sudden they were upon the colonists and they took no mercy. The boy crying out to his mother totally humanized the situation because you can reach out and feel the boy's pain. You can do this because there is a time in every ones life where they cry out for there mother in a time of need. It only makes it sadder at the end when they say they will bury the boy underneath the maple tree. That really takes it to a whole new level. It probably went and made the colonists want to go and fight the bastards who killed the boy to seek revenge.
It seems like this song is to kinda convince people that the violence in the war is harming both sides. I think the lines "Hey momma, come lookin' for me....momma look sharp" can be interpreted as "Look for the real meaning behind this revolution".....Perhaps it was written to make people convince motives.
This song is definitely propaganda, fueling feelings all over the place - no doubt this song hit home for many, many people, reminding them of everyone who died defending their families - and their colonies. In terms of the musical itself, as Cap'n Raja said wonderfully, this song gives us a little insight into what was going on at the time outside of a bunch of (very important) men arguing amongst themselves. There was death, personal loss, sadness, rage...people who were not even trained to be in the military fought with all their might. I guess some without political experience did the same in the congress (wasn't one representative "just a simple cobbler"?), but it wasn't as life threatening.
In this song, the "momma" could be symbolizing Britain, and the fallen soldier, 'Billy,' the dream of American Independence. This song could be political irony; the acknowledgement of the fact that the colonies may indeed run back to 'momma' if goings get too rough. However, the third stanza seems to be Britain telling the colonies that she will not save them; but she will bury them.
The second stanza seems rather simple in its message:
"Them soldiers, they fired./Oh ma, did we run". This might show the colonies initial hesitation to join the fight, the first chillings of fear. However, the next line tells how the new Americans found their courage and decided to fight for their independence. The next line, "Then I went under, oh ma, am I done?" is purely hypothetical, intended to show what might have happened. In this song, the "momma" could be symbolizing Britain, and the fallen soldier, 'Billy,' the dream of American Independence. This song could be political irony; the acknowledgement of the fact that the colonies may indeed run back to 'momma' if goings get too rough. However, the third stanza seems to be Britain telling the colonies that she will not save them; but she will bury them.
This song was chosen for it's ability to insinuate thoughts into one's head; the possibilities of failure for the Americans.
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