For this journal assignment, I want you to investigate the connections between emotion and language. You’ll do this by choosing a song and analyzing the lyrics.
1. Pick a song you like that has lyrics. The song can be contemporary or older; it can be from any style or genre of music (provided it has lyrics, so no classical or orchestral music). This assignment will work best if you choose a song by one singer, not a duet or collaboration between multiple artists. Read the song lyrics. Listen to the song.
2. First, you’ll analyze the emotional expression in the song: the emotion in both the message of the song and in how it is communicated. Choose two concepts from the textbook chapter on emotions and discuss how you see them playing out in the song you’ve chosen. Make specific connection between the textbook concept and your chosen song. Point out specific examples, quote from your song lyrics, and explain your thinking.
3. Next, you’ll analyze your song lyrics for the specifics of how that song is using language. What is the language doing in the song? Why those specific word choices, or sentence constructions, etc…? How we are using language (or not) alters the messages we send. Again, you’ll choose two concepts from the language chapter in your textbook and discuss how you see them in action in your song lyrics. You may choose any two concepts from the language chapter, but for each one, pull specific examples from the song lyrics and fully explain how the textbook concept is present and working in the song.
4. Based on your analysis of the emotional expression and specific language used in the song, what conclusions can you make about how emotion and language are connected, or not? Explain your thinking.
5. Attach your song lyrics to the end of your Journal Assignment or include them as a separate document.
You will use material from Week 3 to write this journal assignment. You may also pull in material from any other chapters/weeks you think is relevant.
Make sure you look over the Journal Assignment Writing Guidelines handout also posted here. The length requirement for this assignment is 2-4 pages, typed, double-spaced. You will turn this journal in via the Assignment Turn-In Link in Week 4. Upload your journal assignment as either a Word doc or a PDF. Do not type directly into the text box.