Tuesday, September 16, 2008

 

Hip Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes

We started watching Byron Hurt's film: Hip Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes. First we reviewed the assignment from yesterday. Many students had not developed thesis sentences, so we shared and developed others, then wrote a introductory paragraph.

For homework students who counted off as number 1, were to write a second paragraph. The 2s were to write a conclusion. The topic is "soul poverty," as illustrated in Tupac's poem, "Untitled" (15). Try to use a direct quote in your paragraph. Don't forget to use a signal phrase.

Here is the first paragraph in the three paragraph essay:

In "Untitled," Tupac Shukur uses poverty as metaphor. He describes what it feels like to have his freedom of speech taken away. He feels true poverty is an absence of voice or expression. He says, "[He] would rather be stricken blind than live w/out expression of mind" (Rose 15). He gives examples of different types of poverty in his community: monetary and spiritual, as well as , physical. American society exploits the vulnerability of its disenfranchised by devaluing or ignoring their human worth. His "third eye" allows him to overcome what the writer defines as poverty , because he is culturally rich.

Post your paragraphs here after class tomorrow. Bring in a paper copy to share. We'll continue watching the film.

Comments:
Andrew Nguyen
English 201A
8-8:50

Conclusion (So redundant...BAD ANDREW)

Through poverty, Tupac will continue to experience ignorance in the community. The people within the community will still be culturally poor all because of it. It affects many people through physical, monetary, or spiritual lost. There are others who are able to beat this obstacle and remains culturally rich. Tupac is one of those outsiders. He hopes the cultural ignorance will end, helping the community to rise, and his recurring nightmare end.
 
2nd verse

To break the chains of cultural ignorance and transcend its artificially imposed definitions of identity, 2pac expresses, at least implicitly, that it will take an awareness of your true identity. That is, to know what you truly are and where you must go, you must know where you came from. To know your true self, and therefore, your true nature. 2pac paints this picture:

Where my culture I'm told holds no significance/ I'll wither and die in ignorance/ But my inner eye can c a race/ who reigned as kings in another place/ the green of trees were rich an full/ and every man spoke of beautiful/ men and women together as equals/ war was gone because all was peaceful/

Here we see 2pac combating the implication that his culture holds no significance by responding with an affirmation of a more lasting and ultimate cultural imprint. The notion being forced upon him seeks to only allow him access to a limited context of information. 2pac correctly concludes that operating from this foundation of knowledge the soul can only weaken and atrophy. To transcend it requires access to a context more representational of the self.

Z
 
Markita Stewart
English 201A

In the poem "Untitled" Tupac expresses how society igorance and biogtry is prevalent in today
generation. For instance,when he said, "Where my culture I'm told have holds no significance." Which we know to be incorrect as african americans. Because if we about our history and of our heritage,and the many things that were accomplished and endure in order for them to survive as slaves. I believe it's due to preservance of our culture as a whole that has made american what it is today.
the american history books that once left out african american out are finally including us. Showing our future generation that the past is a foundation to start from in order to move forward with not backwards.
 
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