Patriotism Represented Symbolically
Patriotism or love for one’s country as defined by Merriam-Webster can culminate in many ways. This could include anything from helping your fellow countryman to doing your civic duty and voting. However, one way that most people practice patriotism is through song.
Patriotism is something that is represented for the most part very symbolically and that carries over into the music written about it. In the case of these songs both the American flag, the Bald Eagle and Uncle Sam are all symbols for the nation.
The songs about the American Flag show love for the country and your fellow countryman. The flag is representative of our great nation. It includes a star for each of the fifty states united under one nation. According to PBS.org, “The flag consists of 13 horizontal stripes, seven red alternating with six white. The stripes represent the original 13 Colonies and the stars represent the 50 states of the Union. The colors of the flag are symbolic as well; red symbolizes hardiness and valor, white symbolizes purity and innocence, and blue represents vigilance, perseverance and justice”.
Here the song describes how every nation has an emblem that they would rather die for then yield. This shows how the freedom that the Bald Eagle represents is so important to the American people that they would rather die than to lose it. This is an ultimate act of love being represented.
Uncle Sam is another iconic symbol for both America and Patriotism. According to Brittanica.com, “The origin of the term Uncle Sam, though disputed, is usually associated with a businessman from Troy, New York, Samuel Wilson, known affectionately as “Uncle Sam” Wilson. The barrels of beef that he supplied the army during the War of 1812 were stamped “U.S.” to indicate government property”. However, he is most famously known for his appearance in WWI recruitment posters.
Patriotism During World War I
While World War 1 was a turbulent time for the United States, as well as the rest of the world, it sparked several different acts of patriotism in the United States. This can again be seen reflected in several different areas including Music, Photography, and acts of citizenship.
Here are a couple of examples of songs that were popular for marching soldiers during World War I. While they are not from the years during the war they both show great examples of music supporting soldiers. Songs such as these would have been used to inspire the soldiers as well as the people back home.
“Good-Bye Broadway, Hello France!” Item courtesy of YouTube via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPmjE00D2VQ
This audio file is for, “Good-Bye Broadway, hello France!”, a song that was popular during World War 1. It is a song that would have been used to pep up the soldiers who had to leave home, many of them for the first time, and go fight a war over seas.
This is an example of patriotism at Baylor during World War I. This is an In-Memoriam page from the 1919 Round-Up. It lists the names of enlisted students who lost their lives in the war.
These are the biographies of the heads of the “Students Army and Navy Training Corps at Baylor University. General Beaumont B. Buck left for two years during World War I in 1917, and Captain J. S. Howe remained at the school until the SATC was disbanded once the armistice was signed. These men would have been responsible for preparing students to enter the military and eventually fight in the war. This club symbolizes peoples urge to be patriotic and serve their country and seemed to be quite popular at Baylor during the war. This edition of the Round-up has a large section dedicated to the people who were in the club and in the war.
Patriotism Post War During Prohibition
Post war the patriotism of the nation was still high but the minds of its people would soon shift into a different focus. Shortly after World War I prohibition began and the nation was dry. This caused people to band together in a different way and voice their opinion against this new law. This showed a form of patriotism arise in music because people believed the law was unpatriotic.
The song “We Want Our Beer” is about people chanting that they would like their beer back. In the song, it compares this chant that everyone is singing to a “Battle Cry of Freedom” which makes it seem like you are doing the patriotic thing and chanting with them. In the song “The Nations Beer parade a similar theme is explored and lets the listener know if they want to stand up with their fellow countryman all they need to do is join the beer parade. Both of these themes are similar to themes used in times of war to spark patriotism.
In the song, “Okay Beer! (Better Times Will Soon Be Here)”. They sing about all the things bringing beer back will solve. They discuss the fact that prohibition has cut jobs in the industry and has been bad for the economy in general. In fact, there is a line that says, “Break the ice at any price and free Uncle Sam”. With Uncle Sam long being a symbol for patriotism this song is saying prohibition is unpatriotic because it put metaphorically put Uncle Sam on ice.
In similar fashion to “Okay Beer! (Better Times Will Soon Be Here)”, the song, “Bye-Bye Mr. Dry (You’re All Wet)” discusses how important alcohol has been to several great moments in American history. These include Valley Forge, and Columbus discovering America. These are both defining moments in history and show that people associated the freedom to drink with patriotism.
Finally, here is a piece of music that has high symbolism in the book art. While the actual song doesn’t blatantly say prohibition is unpatriotic it does a lot of questioning of the whole law. It basically says people will become addicted to candy and soda fountains. This is represented in the cover art by a Mellow drama style villain selling this new law. This symbolism is very negative and clearly shows that the writer does not support the law.
Text and curation by Alex Hampton
SOURCES CONSULTED
PBS: http://www.pbs.org/a-capitol-fourth/history/old-glory/
Merriam-Webster: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/patriotism
Encyclopedia Brittanica: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Uncle-Sam