OVERALL COMMENTS
By Ellery
On April 26, 2012, Bob Dylan was awarded the presidential medal of freedom because of his song writing capabilities. Specifically the medal was awarded to him because of Blowin in the wind. But how could a song have an impact to be worthy of such a significant award?
April 24, 1962, Dylan's second album, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, was recorded. This was the day that put Bob Dylan on the map not only as a songwriter but as an activist for the Civil Rights Movement. His song Blowin’ in the wind was in this album and from here would be known as an anthem for the movement.
Dylan began performing at ralliess for CORE. Then later, in the spring of 1963, Dylan sang it at a voter registration rally in Greenwood, Mississippi. A few hours before Martin Luther King gave his ‘I have a dream’ speech, Peter, Paul, and Mary performed Blowin’ in the Wind on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Peter from Peter, Paul, and Mary recalls singing it during the march from Selma to Montgomery.
Peter remembers, "When we sang it, it was in a field where probably I'd say, oh, 5,000 of the poorest people I'd ever seen, all of them black. And they waited in the rain for a couple of hours 'cause the sound system had gone to the wrong destination. We sang it very slowly, very, very--in a very determined way, but with a sense of the weariness of the people that surrounded us."
Dylan told Sing Out Magazine in 1962, "The song can be anything to anybody. It's critical and it's hard, this litany of questions about what's wrong with the world...`The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind.'"
Blowin’ in the Wind can be transformed by different minds. The song was adapted by the Civil Rights Movement, however it was also used in the anti-war movement. Dylan purposely wrote lyrics that made people think. There is no right answer and it is what makes this song timeless. 5o years later this song can still relate to current issues, and 5o years from now it probably will too.
After going to the South and learning about the issues that prevailed in the sixties, I infer Bobs lyrics differently than before. When I hear the eloquent lyrics I can relate them to the Civil Rights movement. For example he sings, “How many seas must a white dove sail before she sleeps in the sand?” Bob Dylan may be asking when African Americans would have done enough for the movement to finally earn their rights. The dove being white symbolises innocence, for those with darker skin had done nothing to deserve what they had endured. The dove itself symbolises peace. The dove sails through the seas not yet landing for the world was still in the mists of war and discrimination. The sea represents the never ending fight for freedom. Once this white dove lands the world is at peace and the white dove can finally rest in the sand. Therefore the sand represents the day when those who fought and keep fighting have won and can finally rest.
Another line in which Dylan asks all of humanity a question that comes off rhetorically is, “How many times must a man look up before he can see the sky?" Dylan may have been challenging the belief that all African Americans were free in the United States. For it was as though they were given the right to look up, but have yet to see the sky. They have been given the right to vote but have yet to use it, for there are too many obstacles in their way. In this case, the sky can also represent the truth that African Americans were being oppressed and the clouds may be the lies that flooded America claiming that they were free—the lies that covered up for all the wrongdoing that took place.
Using symbolism like the sky, the sea, and the white dove to represent the struggle and the people enduring it, Dylan's lyrics gave hope to the Civil Rights movement. After going on this trip, I learned that while we have come a long way, the white dove may never be able to land; this is because the march for human rights will never be over.
April 24, 1962, Dylan's second album, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, was recorded. This was the day that put Bob Dylan on the map not only as a songwriter but as an activist for the Civil Rights Movement. His song Blowin’ in the wind was in this album and from here would be known as an anthem for the movement.
Dylan began performing at ralliess for CORE. Then later, in the spring of 1963, Dylan sang it at a voter registration rally in Greenwood, Mississippi. A few hours before Martin Luther King gave his ‘I have a dream’ speech, Peter, Paul, and Mary performed Blowin’ in the Wind on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Peter from Peter, Paul, and Mary recalls singing it during the march from Selma to Montgomery.
Peter remembers, "When we sang it, it was in a field where probably I'd say, oh, 5,000 of the poorest people I'd ever seen, all of them black. And they waited in the rain for a couple of hours 'cause the sound system had gone to the wrong destination. We sang it very slowly, very, very--in a very determined way, but with a sense of the weariness of the people that surrounded us."
Dylan told Sing Out Magazine in 1962, "The song can be anything to anybody. It's critical and it's hard, this litany of questions about what's wrong with the world...`The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind.'"
Blowin’ in the Wind can be transformed by different minds. The song was adapted by the Civil Rights Movement, however it was also used in the anti-war movement. Dylan purposely wrote lyrics that made people think. There is no right answer and it is what makes this song timeless. 5o years later this song can still relate to current issues, and 5o years from now it probably will too.
After going to the South and learning about the issues that prevailed in the sixties, I infer Bobs lyrics differently than before. When I hear the eloquent lyrics I can relate them to the Civil Rights movement. For example he sings, “How many seas must a white dove sail before she sleeps in the sand?” Bob Dylan may be asking when African Americans would have done enough for the movement to finally earn their rights. The dove being white symbolises innocence, for those with darker skin had done nothing to deserve what they had endured. The dove itself symbolises peace. The dove sails through the seas not yet landing for the world was still in the mists of war and discrimination. The sea represents the never ending fight for freedom. Once this white dove lands the world is at peace and the white dove can finally rest in the sand. Therefore the sand represents the day when those who fought and keep fighting have won and can finally rest.
Another line in which Dylan asks all of humanity a question that comes off rhetorically is, “How many times must a man look up before he can see the sky?" Dylan may have been challenging the belief that all African Americans were free in the United States. For it was as though they were given the right to look up, but have yet to see the sky. They have been given the right to vote but have yet to use it, for there are too many obstacles in their way. In this case, the sky can also represent the truth that African Americans were being oppressed and the clouds may be the lies that flooded America claiming that they were free—the lies that covered up for all the wrongdoing that took place.
Using symbolism like the sky, the sea, and the white dove to represent the struggle and the people enduring it, Dylan's lyrics gave hope to the Civil Rights movement. After going on this trip, I learned that while we have come a long way, the white dove may never be able to land; this is because the march for human rights will never be over.