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demoralisation. I quote Hayakawa : Instead of the self-abasement
that we find in the kick-me-in-the-
face-again-because-I-love-you school of thought, the heartbroken
men and women of the blues songs
regroup their emotional forces and carry on without breakdown of
morale. There is the constant willingness
to pursue life:Im a young woman, and I aint done running round
(in : Young Womans Blues by Bessie
Smith).
The author calls the blues an equipment for living, an equipment
for living humble, laborious and
precarious lives at the outskirts of society. In any case, he
states, the blues lyrics more realistic symbolism
offers a much better mental preparation for life. This is no
other statement than the one which is traditionally
made by blues scholars approaching the subject from a social
angle: blues is the expression of the way
that the African Americans have learnt to live in a society
which was oppressive. Blues helped to survive
and cope; they contain the necessary antidote that is needed for
staying optimistic that one day the sun will
be rising at the horizon.
The conclusion of his article contains the moralistic lesson
(which is not free of some humoristic
undertone): Cannot our poets and our songwriters try to do at
least as much for our young people as
Bessie Smith did for her audiences, namely provide them with
symbolic experiences which help them
understand, organize, and better cope with their problems. Or,
if that is too much to ask (), can they not at
least cease and desist from further spreading the
all-too-prevalent IFD disease.
Didnt I tell you? The blues are healthy for the mind; popular
music on the contrary creates nothing but
frustration and leads to psychological problems and
disconnection from society. Viva the blues as
psychological equipment for life!
I dont need to detail you the reactions that his article
provoked amongst the white middle-class parents
who concluded from Hayakawas paper that they were expected to
educate their offspring more in the spiritof the barrel house love
than along the lines that were set by Romeo and Juliet. Perhaps the
idea was not
so bad: I dont know of many blues artists who committed suicide,
whilst Romeo and Juliet..
_________________________________________
(1) Reprinted in Write me a few of your lines, S.C. Tracy,
1999
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ues is good for your mental health | MyBlues
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