Table of contentsIntroductionThe artistThe lyricsMusicLegacyIntroductionEmmett Till, a 14-year-old African-American boy in 8th grade at McCosh School, was visiting his cousins ​​in Money, Mississippi during August 1955. He was originally from Chicago and lived with his mother. On August 24, he went to a grocery store to buy a pack of bubble gum while in Mississippi. Say no to plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essay On his way out, he whistled or flirted with the white saleswoman at the store who was very offended by it, and she said so to her husband, Carolyn Bryant. Four days after this incident, Bryant and his half-brother, JW Millam, kidnapped Till from his uncle's home. They then beat and killed him, shooting him in the head. They also tied him to a large piece of metal with barbed wire and threw him into the Tallahatchie River. His body was found three days after the incident. His face was so badly injured and distorted that the only way police could identify him was through his ring, which was originally his father's. Eventually, the brothers were charged with the murder of Emmett Till, and on September 19, 1955, the court case was heard. However, the jury was entirely white and the brothers were acquitted despite there being an overwhelming amount of evidence against them. The deliberation only lasted about an hour, which is extremely short. In January 1956, the brothers admitted to murdering Till and told the full story to Look magazine. In the magazine, one of the last things the brothers say to Till is, "Damn, I'm going to make an example of you." – just so everyone can know where me and my parents stand.” The brothers killed Till to send a message that they did not approve of African Americans being able to “flirt” with white women. However, they could not be charged again due to double criminality laws. Even more recently, in a 2007 interview, the store clerk told the press that Till never whistled or tried to flirt with her and that she had made it up. This interview was later published in 2017. Throughout the history of this murder, many civil rights activists and other members of society have spoken out against this murder, including Bob Dylan. Artist Bob Dylan, originally named Robert Allen Zimmerman, was born on May 24. , 1941, the same year as Emmett Till. He grew up in Duluth, Minnesota and always had an interest in music. He began making a name for himself playing folk music in college under the name Bob Dylan. He was inspired by the famous folk singer Woody Guthrie, who also sang protest songs. Dylan arguably wrote this song for the same reason Guthrie wrote his songs, to try to bring attention to an unjust cause. He tried to follow in his idol's footsteps and write a widespread protest song. At the time he was writing the song, there were many pressing issues surrounding racial justice. One of the most prevalent issues was Brown V. Board of Education in 1954. During this Supreme Court case, the “separate but equal” clause was created. stating that facilities could be segregated for whites and African Americans if they were equal. However, these facilities were rarely equal, with white facilities generally being nicer. In the 1960s when the song was written, the fight for equal rights in America was becoming more and more prevalent as Dr. King gave his famous "IHave a Dream” about a year after Dylan wrote his song. Later in his career, Dylan said that the main reason he wrote this song was to write about something current. However, this song still had a positive impact because it was able to shed even more light on the murder of Emmett Till. The Lyrics "The Death of Emmett Till" was a very literal song that got straight to the point that racial injustice in the southern world needed to change. He sang this song in the folk genre, for which he is most famous. Dylan uses simple, direct language to address his audience and get his message across. In the song, Dylan almost skips a beat and begins to describe the story of Emmett Till. He said: “His skin color was black and his name was Emmett Till. Some men dragged him to a barn and there they beat him. They said they had a reason, but I don’t remember what.” Dylan begins by giving some facts about the situation. He also says the brothers had a reason, but he doesn't remember it. By doing this, he discredits the brothers and condemns their “reason.” Shortly after, Dylan says, "They tortured him and did bad things, too bad to repeat." There were screams inside the barn, there was laughter in the street.” Dylan explains how this situation and murder was acceptable in Southern culture. He claims that this murder was even supported by the community. The brothers even admit it, because when the brothers were taking Till to the river, Milliam said, “When we got to this gin it was daylight and I was worried for the first time. Someone might see us and accuse us of stealing the fan. The brothers were more worried about someone seeing them with the fan than stopping them from getting rid of Till. This shows the reader that this behavior was completely acceptable in Southern culture. Later, Dylan talks about his brother's trial for Till's murder. He said: “Two brothers confessed to killing poor Emmett Till. But on the jury there were men who helped the brothers commit this horrible crime. » Dylan believes that the only reason the brothers were not charged with this crime was that the jury was made up entirely of white men because there was still racial discrimination during selection. juries. Although there was enough evidence for a convention, the brothers were acquitted. Dylan decides to end the song by reminding us that "But if all of us, people who think the same, if we gave everything we could give, we could make our great country a better place to live." Dylan attempts to remind his audience that the ideology and thoughts that allowed Till's killers to get away still exist and that we must fight against them. The musicBob Dylan knew how to convey the right emotions in his song by singing it like a folk song. The lack of instruments other than his guitar makes his voice more widespread and captivating. He sings this song in a somber mood to show that Till's death was a tragedy and something that should not be taken lightly. He thought it was a serious subject and he wanted his song to reflect his opinions. He sang this song with a pain in his voice that almost convinced the listener that he had a personal connection to Emmett Till, even if he didn't. He sang this song like this so that people would remember it and remember the injustice of the murder of Emmett Till. Overall, Dylan sings this song so that form matches function. He sings in a way that the listener remembers and with a serious mood. The legacy.