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A Textual Analysis Of John Lennon's Protest Song

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The 1960’s was a decade of political and social activism. This generation was swept off its feet by many different song writers who were not afraid to sing in protest of our government. A simple song, can have the power to change the minds and heart of a country, and how they affect or reflect our thoughts about the government and our experiences as American citizens. There were songs created that spoke out against anti-war and political protests. If there is any type of social injustice in this world, there will always be people protesting these injustices through music. Some protest songs from the 1960’s became anthems and still resonate today.
The protest song from the 1960’s that I chose to do a textual analysis on is called Give peace a chance, by John Lennon. The song was released in 1969. During the 1970’s, this song became an anthem of the American anti-war movement. This was about war in general and the Vietnam war. One of the themes for this song is peace. “All we are saying is give peace a chance” (John Lennon Lyrics, 2017, p.1 Album, Live Peace in Toronto 1969). John Lennon’s song, give peace a chance, was telling people to strive for peace and not war. The lyrics for this song were a way for Lennon too voice his own personal views on peace and …show more content…
This song was released on October 7, 2016. The song is about President Donald Trump actions and words along with other issues we face. One theme of this song is hate. The lyrics talk about what good is history, if we repeat it? Repeating horrible acts such as bigotry and tyranny. A person wearing a Donald Trump mask spews words of hate-filled messages to the masses in the video for this song. The song lyrics are also in regards to Trump’s ignorant policies and his racism. Within Green day’s lyrics and video for troubled times, they feel that Donald Trump will usher in another era of civil unrest in

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