Songs of Freedom - The end

Hey,

today we first did a quick recap of what you had to know about the text "Southern Trees". You should organise your notes in a real comment and be able to talk about the text without struggling with words... Tomorrow, you will take a "recap" test about this lesson. Get ready!

Then we continued the lesson with a new very short text about the origins of the blues, and about slavery. Here is what we said about it:

The beginning of slavery (15th century) = slave trade

Positive aspects of singing:  

For the slaves:
- They could express their true feelings
- They were liberated from their worries = it helped them endure their hardships / ordeals / plight.
- They could communicate with a code / with irony in the lyrics

For the slave owners:
- The slaves worked faster because of the rhythm. Singing increased the pace of work.
- It proved the slaves were religiously raised and ensured the continuation of slavery.

==> It entertained both the slaves and their owners.

What was forbidden:

The slaves couldn't communicate between each other -> talking was prohibited + Tribal groups and families were separated / torn apart.

These rules were imposed on the slaves in order to break the links / bounds so as to avoid conflicts and prevent the blacks from helping each other. Drums were also prohibited / outlawed because they could be used as a form of communication.

Finally, we worked on grammar and how to translate the passive structure:

Structure passive -> connotation de victimisation :
Auxiliaire Be + p. passé

"to be written by Léna"

HW: you need to review for your test + don't forget your poems and illustrations (remember the contest!) + those who want to turn in their essay about stars and commitment can do it tomorrow if they haven't finished it yet.

Files:

- Download a copy of the text here. (yet to be uploaded)

- If you want to work on your vocabulary, you can translate some sentences. Click here to download the document