In this chapter, we learned about the many ways that music converses with issues of gender and gender politics in our society, both historical and contemporary. In this assignment, you will choose a work (other than those discussed at length in the textbook or that you’ve discussed in a previous assignment) that in some way addresses issues of gender, research its audience and impact, and study the music itself to understand its overall message. Like Leslie Gore’s “You Don’t Own Me,” your chosen work doesn’t necessarily have to be about gender, but rather might have come to take on a meaning associated with discussions of gender. After reading the textbook, think about the ways that gender and music are discussed in light of one another in each section. You might start by choosing a song that addresses one of those conversations.
Note: if you select an opera or musical to study, the listening guide portion need only address ONE song from the work, but your discussion/analysis portions may address the work as a whole, but do not need to.
You must use at least TWO scholarly or critical sourcesin your assignment, so make sure that you are able to find these sources before deciding on a song. Newspaper and magazine articles are acceptable here as long as they offer an element of criticism and/or review of the song or artist and are cited properly. Avoid using interviews as sources, as they tend to be promotional and do not describe the music from a critical perspective. Be sure to include a works cited or bibliography page that correctly acknowledges these sources. We prefer Chicago/Turabian, but you may use any citation format that you’d like so long as it’s used correctly.
Example:
Aretha Franklin, “Respect” (1967) [note that the link below requires the use of the UF VPN]
Malawey, Victoria. “‘Find out What It Means to Me’: Aretha Franklin’s Gendered Re-Authoring of Otis Redding’s ‘Respect.’” Popular Music 33, no. 2 (2014): 185–207. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24736804.
Provides specific discussion of the song and its relationship to gender
Describes the music (with musical terminology) and its impact
Gilmore, Mikal. “The Queen: Aretha Franklin.” Rolling Stone(blog), September 27, 2018. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/aretha-franklin-tribute-cover-story-queen-729053/
Provides useful background information on the artist, her impact, etc.
This example is a recap of the artist’s life, so it provides a critical perspective on her music
NB: Rolling Stone is considered a good source for popular music, but it has many different types of articles so choose carefully. Are you presenting advertisements/promotions/interviews as critical sources when they are not? Or is your article too brief to be useful?
Be sure to choose a work that you haven’t already used for a previous assignment in this course. If you’d like, you may choose a work mentioned in the textbook, as long as it isn’t discussed at length; this assignment could serve as a way for you to study that work more closely.
Your listening guide should be comprised of the following four sections:
An introduction (100-200 words) that addresses the overall meaning of the song and/or how it became emblematic of discussions of gender. This would be a good place to incorporate the reviews that you found. (8 points)
A listening guide with a description of at least FIVE musical events using proper musical terminology and a discussion of how each event contributes to the song or message as a whole. Remember to incorporate the descriptive language about music that you read about in Chapter 2 and used in Enrichment Assignment One as you describe the musical events.(This may be in table format or narrative format within the body of your project, but it should not be a separate file – ListeningGuideTemplate.doc). (20 points/4 points each)
An evaluation of ONE type of visual material (music video, album artwork, live performance, or excerpt of a musical or opera) in relation to the music (150-200 words). Does the visual material advance the song’s message? What about the visual material addresses gender, if anything? What is effective (or not!) about the visual materials? Are they necessary for understanding the song? Please include a link or the artwork that you discuss in your assignment. (10 points)
End your assignment with a conclusion paragraph (150-200 words) in which you discuss: Was this song intended to address gender, or did it develop meaning over time? Is gender the main topic of the song? How has this song been understood over time? (12 points). If you want, read pages 93-95 in the textbook, “Gender and Pop Music.” They might be helpful here