Gracie Kay Close- A Change is Gonna Come

 In working on my exploratory essay, I analyzed the song A Change is Gonna Come by Sam Cooke. This song was very transformational for its time, and continues to bring about unity 60 years past its release. 

In my essay I discussed the concept of a journey and what this looks like for Sam Cooke through the lyrics of his song. Given the nature of the time, racial tension plagued much of the country which is impactful to his life story. Therefore it makes sense his journey is rooted in the civil rights movement. What interested me about this research I was conducting was how the concept of journey applies to many social movements. Isn't it almost the point?

When one goes on a journey, there is hope for accomplishment of the goal but in common themes there is some transforming act that results from such. In Cooke's case, it was the impact his song had on the lives of many others. He inspired others to undergo the journey of social activism through music. It might not be as traditional as the stories we discussed in class but the elements are all still there. I think it is important for us to look at social movements as such, because it not only holds impact on the accomplished goal but also highlights the effort put in to accomplish the goal. How much did someone want this to happen? How much effort was placed towards this movement? How many people believe this same thing? It can be transforming not just for those in the journey but also those observing such. 

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