Common Letter to the Free- Language and Representation Flashcards

1
Q

Historical and cultural references in the lyrics

A
  • “Southern trees we hung from”

- “Slavery’s still alive, check amendment 13”- 1865

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2
Q

Historical and cultural references in the music

A
  • Bricolage of genres from black culture- gospel, jazz (C.’s all black outfit connotes this), blues, - forms which gave African-Americans a voice in times of oppression
  • Marching percussion beat- chain-gang songs, mournful, grieve over slavery w/dreams of finding future liberty- links to Christian beliefs, often presented as afterlife
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3
Q
  1. Why is gospel so important to african-american culture?

2. How does the video connote African culture?

A
  1. Christian beliefs strong part of giving hope of freedom to the enslaved African Americans.
  2. Barefoot drummer + headwear of one of the female singers connotes African culture.
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4
Q

Modern references in the lyrics

A
  • “They stop, search and arrest our souls”
  • “Shot me with your ray-gun/And now you want to trump me”
  • “For Americans to rise it’s a matter of black lives”
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5
Q

How does the actual video content represent racism?

A
  • Abstract black square
  • Brightly lit areas highlight aspects of mise-en-scene but don’t show performer’s faces- racist approach of us penal system, dehumanising
    e. g. at one point performers are in long-shot, overhead lighting reflects off walls instead of illuminating performers.
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6
Q

Visuals: Black and white

A
  • Connotes history, realism: early photography seen as representing reality + newsreel originally filmed in b+w + newspaper photos so b+w often used to create idea of realism in modern media, feeds into symbolism of this aesthetic choice
  • Seriousness: looks stark, clean lines
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7
Q

Cinematography

A
  • Consistently slow tracking of camera- presents sense of unease, reinforced by the setting, screeching synthesised sound at the beginning
  • Camera going forward, represents journey, camera going backwards in the end shows how society is taking a step back, or how a yt audience is able to take a syep back from black ppl’s problems and ignore them
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8
Q

Mise-en-scene (General)

A
  • Before piano comes in, black square reflects ceiling- audience hasn’t seen the ceiling yet, so it seems to be a cross- spirituality
  • Ordinary costumes
  • Minimal props- barren, stripped back- reality of prison
  • Actors are all divided into groups of 2- the division of black people by system. Never a sense of community
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