Song 9: Do Re Mi
Written: 1940
Subject Matter:
This song is about the difficult journey to California that many impoverished farmers made during the Dust Bowl. Each one hoped to find a better life in California, but there were so many people coming in at once that there weren't any jobs. Therefore, the people who left their homes were no better off than they were before- comparable to the very first Pilgrims in America. Also, after some research, I found that, in fact, immigrants were being kept out of California illegally because they had nothing to offer.
Storytelling:
The song is really written from the point of view of a Californian at the time. The immigrants are advised to stay where they are, because there just aren't enough jobs for all of them. I was about to avoid saying exactly what "do re mi" was, because I really wasn't sure, but after some research, I discovered that "do" is actually supposed to be "dough" as in money. The song is telling immigrants to come to California only if they already have something to support themselves with. Of course, the only reason people were going to California in the first place was because the Dust Bowl had destroyed their means of livelihood, so telling people to come only if they had money was really a moot point.
My Thoughts: I don't think the album would be any worse for the wear having two Woody Guthrie songs on it; DiFranco sounds meaner than Guthrie when she sings it, but besides that, I liked it.
What can we learn?: The Dust Bowl was an unbelievably difficult time in American history. It wiped away almost all means of living for the great portion of the Midwestern population, and the fact that it came during the Great Depression made it even more of a knockout blow. Times were hard everywhere, and with migrants coming in from the Midwest, jobs were in incredibly high demand and equally low supply, which is one big reason why Californians wanted to keep the Dust Bowl immigrants out of their state.
No comments:
Post a Comment