Literary Analysis in Music Project

-J. Fernandez/English 11Music is the strongest form of

magic.-Marilyn Mason

Literary Element #1: Point-of-View Song: Lost Ones by J. Cole

Lyrics• “Baby girl, I can’t

imagine what it’s like for youI got you pregnant now inside there is a life in you”

Point-of-ViewThe vantage point from which a story is told.

Analysis• Here, J. Cole uses the first

person point-of-view thus creating a more vulnerable, more relatable voice. The use of “I” makes the character’s problem the listener’s problem. It’s more emphatic to say “I got you pregnant” than “A guy got you pregnant.” Through the use this point-of-view, Cole allows the listener to connect even deeper; he/she wonders if it’s actually Cole who experienced the issue.

Literary Element #2: CharacterizationSong: Doo Wop by Lauren Hill

Lyrics • “The second verse is

dedicated to the menMore concerned with his rims and his Timbs than his women…Cristal by the case men, still in they mother's basement”

• Girls you know you better watch outSome guys, some guys are only aboutThat thing, that thing, that thing”

Analysis• In these lyrics, Lauren Hill is

employing indirect characterization by describing the actions of men that she believes are shallow posers. She cautions women to steer clear of these types who are only interested in having sexual relations; i.e., “that thing.”

Characterization: The way in which a writer describes a character’s personality

Literary Device #3: Double Entendre

Song: Bandz a Make her DanceArtist: Juicy J

AnalysisJuicy J uses a double entendre in the chorus (and title) “Bandz a

Make her Dance”; one understanding is that “Bands” as

in a group of people playing music will make a woman dance. The other meaning (the hidden, provocative one) is saying that

“bandz” aka huge wads of money held together by rubber bands

can [and should] be used to encourage exotic dancers

(strippers) to perform more suggestively for strip club

patrons.

Double Entendre • A word or expression

that can be understood in two different ways with one way usually referring to something salacious. A triple entendre can be understood three different ways—a quadruple entendre four ways.

Pun vs. Double Entendre

• A pun is a play on words where the humor comes from word replacement (usually a similar sounding word) or possibly by using the fact that a word might have multiple meanings.

• In a double entendre, the humor comes from the fact that the whole phrase can mean something different if the phrase is placed in a different context.