Wednesday, September 30, 2015
Alien Song Lyrics And Xenophobia?
Do the songs and song lyrics connect with the concept of xenophobia? If
so, how? Also, feel free to comment regarding other connections with
science fiction. Please include some references to songs and song lyrics
in your response. Please finish this blog response during class today.
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ReplyDeleteYes the song lyrics connect with the concept of xenophobia. The songs talk about the concept of exploring space and finding a place far away from other people/civilization. In spaceman, the lyrics talk about wanting to go away with a space man, running away to the moon. Also in the song year 2525, the lyrics talk about if man were still alive, then they wouldn't need anything because it would be provided for them. This addressees the concept of being fearful and extrapolation, of science fiction in the future world. The fear of the future is xenophobia in people today. Everyone is fearful in some way of what the future holds. Even though they aren't afraid of aliens, they are afraid of a future society. Within the songs, xenophobia is covered in alien abduction, zombies, future society's, and space exploration.
ReplyDeleteIn all the songs about space they talk about how empty it is, and how nervous they are to leave, Because it's something they don't understand. They cover the zombie Apocalypse and area 51 and aliens and other types of scenarios that could potentially happen.
ReplyDeleteSome of the song lyrics connect to the concept of xenophobia because in the song Spaceman the singer talks about "cutting him open" which means the aliens would be hostile and he has all right to fear it. The song "In the Year 2525", the singer talks about how man may not even be alive after thousands of years which could imply that aliens could come and take over Earth. The singer is also afraid of what the Earth will become and describes how the world gets progressively less human like and more machine until the point where he says, "If God's a-comin' he ought to make it by then
ReplyDeleteMaybe he'll look around Himself and say
Guess it's time for the Judgment day".
The song lyrics connect to the concept of xenophobia, by talking about the typicality thing that we think of when we think aliens, abductions, showing we classify them into one group, and not giving them any other characteristics.
ReplyDeleteThey connect because it may seem foreign and unknown to us but in our parents time they maybe enjoyed. which is xenophobia by showing that we don't like things that are foreign to us like even this tittle "Zombie's ate my neighbors" is really weird and not a title that most people today find interesting and curious to want to read it.
ReplyDeleteThe lyrics do connect with xenophobia because it talks about things that we are sacred of as simple as zombies or being in space could be xenophobia because it is foreign to us.
ReplyDeleteAll the song lyrics seem to follow the theme that in the future lives for us will actually be worse. The ones about aliens usually talk about being kidnapped and taken from their home. The Killers said, "It started with a low light, Next thing I knew they ripped me from my bed." It shows xenophobia because when people think aliens they usually think about their hostility as apposed to their friendliness. These songs encourage xenophobia against aliens.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteIn many of the songs, it seemed like the lyrics were about being afraid of aliens or zombies, or whatever was being sung about in the song. In Mr. Spaceman and Spaceman, there were lyrics talking about being abducted, and how that made the singers afraid and did not want to go into space or explore anymore. These songs connect very well with the concept of xenophobia, because they are all talking about being afraid of “strangers”, which are the aliens and zombies in this case.
Not only does literature deal with elements of xenophobia, but the culture of songs does too. In the songs we listened to today, things such as alien abductions and zombie attacks were mentioned. For example, in "They're Not Here, They're Not Coming" by Don Henley, the song starts out with people staring expectantly at the sky. It talks about how "...there was an accident back in '47 Little man with a great big head Splattered down from heaven Government conspiracy; cover-ups and lies Hidden in the desert under endless skies" (Henley). If an alien came down, the government would've covered it up in fear of the unknown, just like xenophobia within science fiction stories.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised that the alien song lyrics had varying levels of xenophobia. In "Mr. Spaceman," the protagonist sees aliens and is eager to leave what he knows and wishes to go with them "Hey Mr. Spaceman, won't you please take me along." In "Spaceman," we hear a person's tale of abduction and how they are still haunted by the experience "And you know I'm fine, but I hear those voices at night sometimes- they justify my claim." This is interesting, because while he didn't like the experience, he isn't mad about it, and the song carries a nostalgic tone. These songs may or may not be an accurate reflection of society as a whole's view on aliens, as people who write songs about space life generally don't have a negative view on them
ReplyDeleteThe song "They're Not Here, They're Not Coming" by Don Henley has xenophobic elements when it says
ReplyDelete"Would they pile into the saucer
Find Orlando's rat and hug it?
Go screaming through the universe
Just to get McNuggets?
Well, I don't think so, I don't think so
It's much too dangerous, it's much too strange"
This song especially is xenophobic when it mentions the aliens and says that them coming is "much to dangerous and strange".
I think that these songs connect with the concept of xenophobia,in a few songs the aliens are feared among the people. Space man, by The Killers, talks about how he was having fun witnessing the stars, but then he changed his mind when they cut him open. In the year of 2525, by Zager and Evans, talks about how humanity is barely surviving likely due to an alien attack on earth.
ReplyDeleteSome of the songs have xenophobia in them; however "Zombies Ate My Neighbors" is rather reasonable to be scared of zombies, given that they eat people so when he said "this isn’t funny anymore, oh no, this means war," that makes sense. If you're in danger, is it really considered xenophobia? I don't think it should. Another example of xenophobia occurring after being in danger is in "Spaceman" by the Killers, "that I could leave this star-crossed world behind/ but when they cut me open/ I guess I changed my mind." I mean if I had been cut open by something I would no longer want to be friendly towards that said something. Basically, what I'm trying to say is that I think xenophobia is bad, but if it's from being in danger then that is a good time to be xenophobic so as to not be harmed or killed.
ReplyDeleteMost of these songs deal with Xenophobia, but some don’t. Almost all of the stories have alien encounters on Earth. But the perspectives of the people seeing the aliens is different. For some songs like, “Mr.Spaceman,” by the Byrds, the lead singer is pleading the aliens to take him with him. And then there are songs like, “Zombies ate my Neighbors,” by Single File, is very Xenophobic. It is about a zombie invasion and how the lead singer must bunker down and fight for his life. These songs are split down the middle, half of them are xenophobic and are fearful of aliens, whereas others are accepting of Aliens and want to befriend them.
ReplyDeleteXenophobia in the songs have multiple approaches to dealing with things that they are not used. In the song Zombies Ate My Neighbors the neighborhood residents take up arms and try to defend themselves from the unknown:" Find something sharp, grab some cover, kill the lights and nail the backdoor shut." In Spaceman the subject of the song is in space and the Earth will not take them back,"Hey mother Earth won'tchu bring me back down, safely to the sea?"
ReplyDeleteMost of the songs that were played in class do agree with the idea of xenophobia. Some songs such as "Mr. Spaceman", are not xenophobic. In Mr Spaceman, the lead singer asks for the aliens to take him. But in other songs, the singers are very xenophobic towards things that they are not used to.
ReplyDelete"They're Not Here,They're Not Coming" by Don Henley who is the lead singer of The Eagles, the song lyrics connect to the concept of xenophobia in numerous ways.The lyrics "They swear there was an accident back in '47
ReplyDeleteLittle man with with a great big head
Splattered down from heaven
Government conspiracy;government and lies
Hidden in the desert under the endless skies"
The lyrics are of the 1947 incident in Roswell,NM where a apparent alien aircraft with a body was found.But no trace of evidence has there was a UFO crash leading to a government cover-up.
David Bowie's "Starman" does not address xenophobia. As xenophobia is a fear or hatred toward something we don't understand, David Bowie introduces the concept of a starman who seems fairly accepted and says he doesn't come down because he'll blow our mind - suggesting confusion and excitement rather than loathing and hatred.
ReplyDeleteIn comparison, The Byrds "Mr. Spaceman" briefly addresses xenophobia with the lyric "Whose saucers shaped light put people up tight..." which leads to the inference that many are made pretty uncomfortable by the idea of UFOs and Extraterrestrials.
In The Killers' "Spaceman" there is a brief reference of the xenophobic fear that all aliens want initially is to probe us, though the spaceman assures us that our fears are all products of our mind.
In Don Henley's "They're Not Here, They're Not Coming" he assures us that even though UFOs and the like probably exist, they won't visit us unless we overcome our xenophobia with the lyrics: "They're not here, they're not coming / Not in a million years / 'Til we put away our hatred / 'Til we lay aside our fears".
With Single File's "Zombies Ate My Neighbors" there is obvious hostility toward zombies. With the lyrics: "So grab something sharp / Find some cover / Kill the lights and nail the backdoor shut / This isn't funny any more / Oh no, this means war" there is obvious xenophobia, a hatred and loathing for zombies to the point of battle preparation.
The songs and song lyrics do connect with the concept of xenophobia. This is because generally the songs are either a story of being scared by aliens and the unknown or a story of being upset by aliens and the unknown and wanting to fight it. They're Not Here They're Not Coming by Don Henley the songs goes “They're not here, they're not coming. Not in a million years. Turn your weary eyes back homeward. Stop your trembling, dry your tears.” This connects with xenophobia because it shows how the subject in the song is upset because of the unknown.
ReplyDeleteThe songs compare to xenophobia by showing different people's responses to different things. They show how people can be welcoming or afraid of aliens or zombies. In Single File's "Zombies Ate My Neighbors" there is obvious hostility toward zombies. The lyrics: "So grab something sharp / Find some cover... / Oh no, this means war" there is obvious fear of zombies and a need to hide and fight back.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the song lyrics in Muse are connected to xenophobia. Mind Dark is the song that Chris wrote for the show. Mind Dark is about discrimination and fear both references towards xenophobia. In the song Changes by Tupac, he references the treatment of black people by the police. The lyrics are quite explicit but he references how the police don’t care about black people. This song is a social commentary just as the song Mind Dark was suppose to be in Muse.
ReplyDeleteThe song lyrics connect with the concept of xenophobia by the references to spacemen and not wanting to travel to other planets. The song's lyrics suggest that humans don’t want to be swept away and would rather want to stay on Earth. In the song “Mr. Spacemen” by The Byrds, the chorus to the song is
ReplyDelete“Hey Mr. Spaceman, won't you please take me along
I won't do anything wrong
Hey Mr. Spaceman, won't you please take me along
For a ride”
This talks about how we don’t want to interact with aliens.
The connections between the songs in the Muse and the concepts of xenophobia are shown through the song "Mr. Spacemen". "They're not here, they're not coming / Not in a million years / 'Til we put away our hatred / 'Til we lay aside our fears". This shows how we understand our discrimination but at the same time know that it will take a long time for us humans to get over them.
ReplyDeleteIn the alien songs the connection to xenophobia was very varied, While in Mr.Spaceman, the main character see liens, and is ready to leave everything behind and go with them, while in the song, Spaceman, he tells a story of how he was abducted, and how he still hated it and is still given nightmares about. These songs all reflect any type of xenophobia, like how Mr. Spaceman does not show any xenophobia, while Spaceman does and how he wouldn't want to meet anther again.
ReplyDeleteAlex Hershey