SOCIAL ISSUES IN SONGS:
How Songs Mirror Our World
Music has a powerful social influence on society. It helps us remember the past,
grapple with current issues and trends, and look to a brighter tomorrow. Popular
music and lyrics are often focused on social and/or political issues related to the time
they were created. For example, The Rolling Stones 1969 hit, Gimme Shelter, is a
response to the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War. Clearly, the repetition
of the phrase, “Rape, murder! / It’s just a shot away / It’s just a shot away,” sheds
light on the negative climate surrounding our involvement in the Vietnam War. The
purpose of this assignment is to 1) select a song, 2) analyze it, and 3)make a claim as to
how the song accurately reflects social/political issues occurring at that period in time.
Guiding questions:
 What is this song in response to? What political and/or social issue is it addressing?
 What is the artist’s response to this social issue? What is he/she trying to say about it? Use evidence from
the song to show this.
 In what ways does the artist’s response to the social issue reflect society’s response as well?
 What was occurring in history at the time this song was written? In what ways could this song be a
commentary on the events occurring at that time?
How do I even begin this paper?
There are a number of ways you can begin this paper, but here are a few options. Please note that although these
are suggestions for how to begin your paper, you will want to include all of these components at some point in the
essay:
 Begin with a summary of the song (What is the song about? What do the lyrics mean?)
 Begin with a historical overview of the time period the song was written.
 Begin with an overview of the social/political issue the song is addressing.
 Begin with your connection to the song.
REQUIREMENTS
 You must provide historical context of the song.
 You must provide an explanation of the social issues the song addresses.
 You must analyze the song’s lyrics to show how it addresses the social issues prevalent.
 You must quote lines from the song to support/illustrate your analysis
 You must include at least two outside sources
 You must correctly cite your sources using MLA format.
 You must include a Works Cited page using MLA format.
 Length is 1000-1200 words.