The School of Arts and Sciences

Course Syllabus

Course

AUDI 1062
SONGS OF PROTEST: WORDS & MUSIC IN THE STRUGGLE
FOR CHANGE

Term

SPRING Semester 2016

Thursday: 3:30 - 6:20
Office: 219 or 207 (writing center)

Instructor

Name:
David Zwillick
Email:
zwillickds@webster.ac.th
Class Portal: www.ajarndavidz.weebly.com
(I spend about 15 hours per week in the writing center. Hours
Office Hours:
are posted on the Writing Center door. At mid-semester, it is
likely that the hours will change to accommodate the new
class I will pick up at that time.)

Catalog
Description

This course will survey the development of the "protest song" from the
19th century to the beginning of the 21st. The course will take an
interdisciplinary approach to explore the synergy of words and music into
a powerful communication tool in the struggle for change. It is not a
course in music history or composition. Students will examine examples
of protest songs and consider the song's socio/political impact, the life of
its composer/performer, the ethical values expressed, and the song's
place in history. Songs from social struggles including slavery, racial
equality, the rise of labor unions, LGBTQ rights and anti-war protests will
form the core of the course content. Although the course will focus on the
protest song in America, it will also touch on its global role in other
countries such as South Africa and Russia. The central questions to be
considered is "how have songs been used as a tool to effect social and
political change, and have they been effective"?
Course work includes weekly lectures, reading and listening
assignments, participation in a discussion group and writing projects that
focus on analysis of songs and their role in social struggles in America
and beyond. Courses may be repeated if content varies. Content for this
course does not vary significantly from term to term.

A note about the amount of work in this class:

Each week there will about 3-5 hours of homework per week:
1) Reading: On average, 30-50 minutes a week.
2) Writing: 10 times you will have an analysis paper to write. Each one can be written in forty minutes to an hour, and then you are expected to
spend at least that much time revising.
3) Song-Writing: Depending on how important your song is to you and how easy such writing comes to you, you could write a song in anywhere
from 30 minutes to 30 hours. Your song does not have to be great, or good, or even fair., but it must be focussed on an issue important to you, and
it must have elements of a song like rhyme, meter, verses and such.
4) Song-Writing Journal: each week you will fill a notebook sized page with song drafts, journalling about the song or the song topic and information
about the song-writing process and the process involved in producing a slideshow and then a video for it. This journal is informal and handwritten
and could be completed in as little as 30 minutes.
5) You will have to put together one slideshow for you song at the mid-semester. Depending on various factors, this project could be done within a
few hours.
6) At semesters end, you will have to make a music video for a lyric you speak or sing. Again, this project might be done quickly (if you have a clear
vision of what you want to do and have the knowledge of how to do it) or it might take you longer. It is recommended that you begin to play and
experiment with skills youll need to make a video (recording with your camera, collecting clips and recording them, editing and soundtracks etc.)

Course Overview

Human beings are in a tough predicament. On the one hand, we

all want to be happy, but on the other hand, we are all in
competition for limited resources and distrustful of people outside
of our family, our town, our country, our race, our religion and so
on. On top of this, we seem only able to construct systems of
culture and governance which perpetuate greed, racism, violence
and all kinds of injustice in which the wealthy are set up to prosper
while those on the outside are set up to fail and to be used,
exploited and sacrificed. Things have gotten better in some ways
for the majority, but there are still glaring injustices and inequalities
which create all kinds of misery for large segments of the
population, and moreover, war is an ever present danger, our
political systems are always in danger of falling apart, and the
environment appears to be under an attack by corporations.
Historically, since the fall of feudalism and rise of capitalistic-like
societies, the way in which the disenfranchised have reacted to
these kinds of injustices is to protest in a wide variety of ways, but
cutting through all of these ways of protest is a mode of expression
which rallies sympathy, garners support, focuses intent and
expresses the anger and frustration in non-violent, but powerful
ways: the protest song.
The kinds of protest songs are as varied as the kinds of protests,
but all serve the function of attempting to unify sympathies to a
cause through logic and emotion. The rhetorical impact of words
put to song is unlike any other mode of expression, for music is a
mysterious force that works on us in non-quantifiable ways.
It is our task in this class to be able to understand how protest
songs work to introduce and carry messages through time and
location. To do this, we will be working towards an integrated and
holistic approach which encompasses the historical background of
the protests in questions, the biographies of the song-writers, the
impact of the songs as they can be traced though media sources,
the political milieu which allows for certain kinds of protest but
which also seeks to suppress other kinds, and the meaning of
song lyrics and how that meaning works in tandem with the music
that accompanies it.
However, our understanding cannot be complete without an
experiential component, and so we will also be charged with the
attempt to write our own protest songs, and then to present those
songs with visual accompaniment: a slideshow at mid-semester
and a music video at semester end. (for those of us who are not
musically inclined, it will be enough to rap the song, or else speak
it [like a poem] with music in the background).
In the end, we can hope to have a broader base of theoretical,
historical and aesthetic knowledge by which to evaluate, analyze,
and contextualize how protest songs work in human culture to
attempt to improve the conditions in which we all live.

Prerequisites

This is an elective course.

Course Level
Learning
Outcomes

Students will

Materials

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the nature of protest songs

and their use as a tool in social/political protest (SSHB)
2. Listen to and evaluate the intellectual and emotional aspects of
protest songs (SSHB)
3. Analyze protest songs from both a historical and personal
perspective and communicate the results in written form
(WCOM)
4. Synthesize the readings, listening and discussion of the course
material as a part of a personal worldview demonstrated
through active written participation in class discussions
(WCOM)
5. Utilize both formal and informal writing skills to effectively
communicate in and about the songwriting process as well as
utilize skills in communicating those results with non-verbal
media. (WCOM)
Key Texts
The textbook in this class has been printed along with lyrics,
assignment explanations and other useful tools.
Any additional materials will be distributed and / or published
on World Classroom or my own class portal.

Grading

The UNDERGRADUATE catalog provides these guidelines and grading options:

A, A- superior work in the opinion of the instructor

B+, B, B- good work in the opinion of the instructor
C+, C, C- satisfactory work in the opinion of the instructor
D+, D passing, but less than satisfactory work in the opinion of the instructor
I incomplete work in the opinion of the instructor
ZF An incomplete which was not completed within one year of the end of the
course
F unsatisfactory work in the opinion of the instructor; no credit is granted
W withdrawn from the course
IP course in progress
NR not reported for the course

ZF a temporary designation given by the registrar indicating that the final grade has not
been submitted by the instructor. When the final grade is filed in the Office of the
Registrar, that grade will replace the ZF.

Activities

The course objectives will be achieved through a variety of assigned

readings, videos, movies, discussions, and presentations.
Assessments will be developed to reflect the scholastic level of the
course, to meet student needs and in keeping with the pace of the
class.

Policy
Statements:
University
Policies

University policies are provided in the current course catalog and course
schedules. They are also available on the university website. This class is
governed by the universitys published policies. The following policies are of
particular interest:
Academic Honesty
The university is committed to high standards of academic honesty. Students
will be held responsible for violations of these standards. Please refer to the
universitys academic honesty policies for a definition of academic
dishonesty and potential disciplinary actions associated with it.
Drops and Withdrawals
Please be aware that, should you choose to drop or withdraw from this
course, the date on which you notify the university of your decision will
determine the amount of tuition refund you receive. Please refer to the
university policies on drops and withdrawals (published elsewhere) to find
out what the deadlines are for dropping a course with a full refund and for
withdrawing from a course with a partial refund.
Special Services
If you have registered as a student with a documented disability and are
entitled to classroom or testing accommodations, please inform the instructor
at the beginning of the course of the accommodations you will require in this
class so that these can be provided.
Disturbances
Since every student is entitled to full participation in class without
interruption, disruption of class by inconsiderate behavior is not acceptable.
Students are expected to treat the instructor and other students with dignity
and respect, especially in cases where a diversity of opinion arises. Students
who engage in disruptive behavior are subject to disciplinary action,
including removal from the course.
Student Assignments Retained
From time to time, student assignments or projects will be retained by The
Department for the purpose of academic assessment. In every case, should
the assignment or project be shared outside the academic Department, the
student's name and all identifying information about that student will be
redacted from the assignment or project.
Contact Hours for this Course
It is essential that all classes meet for the full instructional time as scheduled.
A class cannot be shortened in length. If a class session is cancelled for any
reason, it must be rescheduled.
Academic Freedom
As a member of the student body of a university, it is expected that you will
be part of a community of people who share things in common and who also
differ in many respects. Universities are places of learning and knowledge.
Universities are also places where ideas are formed, exchanged and
debated. Both faculty and students have a responsibility to ensure that a
positive, respectful, constructive and dynamic learning environment is
maintained. Attempts to censor students or faculty through intimidation,
innuendo or interruption/disruption will not be tolerated. People will inevitably
have different views about the world. As adults it is expected that you will
deal with this reality.
In this class, we have recourse to view images and read about certain
aspects of the human condition that may offend some students. In these
cases, the students are free to excuse themselves from the classroom, or
alternately, respectfully voice their objections in private or public.

Assessment

Attendance and participation

(Each absence (after the first one) is a two point

deduction, and each tardy is worth a point.)

Weighted Grade

10%

Quizzes

(There will be between five and ten quizzes over

readings that have been assigned. The quizzes will
consist of short, 5-minute in-class writings in which
you prove you have read the material and where you
will have the opportunity to respond to it. These
quizzes will be given at the beginning of the class,
and can be made up for half-points in the writing
center before the next class meets.)

10%

Weekly Analysis Papers

(In these assignments, you will be analyzing a protest
song relevant to that weeks reading using the
TPCASTT method. There will be a total of 10 of these
papers, each one consisting of about 1,000 words.)

30%

Song-Writing / Presentation Journal

(Here you will track the progress of the protest song/

poem that you are composing which includes drafts of
verses, free-writing about your topic, and
brainstorming ideas for the kinds of images and effects
you wish to present. You are required to show at least
8 pages at mid-term and 8 pages at semesters end)

10%

Mid-Semester Presentation
(For this presentation, you will speak, sing or record
your protest poem or song and play it along with a
slideshow that contains images relevant to your
composition)

15%

Final Presentation (Team Project)

(For this presentation, you will use the same song, an
updated/revised one, or a completely new song and
combine your song with those of the other members
of your team. As a team, you will then create a new
slideshow (with slightly modified criteria).

Mid-Term and Final Examinations

(If the class votes to take the Mid-Term and Final
Examinations in lieu of one or both of the
presentations detailed above, then the exams will be
weighted the same as each of the slideshows.)

25%

15%
25%

Course Policies

The Commission on Higher Education Rules require that in order to

be eligible to take the mid-term/final exam and earn credits for a
course, students need to attend at least 80% of the classes offered
for the subject. This means that there can be no more than THREE
absences recorded by any student. Exceptions can be made in the
case of documented serious illness and other circumstances out of
control of the student. A waiver may be granted by the Academic
Director on a case by case basis, but faculty members are not
authorized to waive this condition.
Further, Webster University rules state that a student who does not
attend a class during the first two weeks will be dropped from that
class.
Effective Spring 2012, attendance requirements will be strictly
enforced. Faculty are required to check student attendance for every
lecture. A copy of the attendance sheet must be submitted to the
Registrar, the Head of Department and the Academic Director at the
following times:
1. At the end of week 2
2. At the end of week 4
3. At the end of week 8
With regards to tardiness, any student arriving late will have points
deducted from his/her participation for that particular class session.
Every absence is a 1% grade deduction, and every tardy is a .5%
grade deduction. These add up, so try to treat your class like a job
and pretend that these deductions are wages being docked from your
salary.
Late students also may not have the time to start or finish a quiz in
progress. These quizzes cannot be made up.
All assignments must be completed regardless of grade penalties for
a student to achieve a pass in this course. All work must be solely the
effort of each individual student except in cases where the
assignment explicitly states otherwise.

Additional
Information

Plagiarism is taken very seriously, and will not be tolerated. Do

not be tempted to misuse sources and material you find online
or in the library.
*According to Professor Robert Harris in his article Anti-Plagiarism
Strategies for Research Papers which appears under the Vanguard
University of Southern California Homepage at www.vanguard.edu,
Plagiarism is using another persons words or ideas without giving
credit to the other person. When you use someone elses words, you
must put quotation marks around them and give the writer or speaker
credit by revealing the source in a citation. Even if you revise or
paraphrase the words of someone else or just use their ideas, you still
must give the author credit in a note. Not giving due credit to the
creator of an idea or writing is very much like lying (Harris, 2000, p.
2).
Plagiarism continues to be an ongoing problem at WUT. It will
not be tolerated. Students found to have plagiarized will have
their name entered on a shared database accessible to all
faculty. Multiple instances of plagiarism will result in significant
disciplinary action.
Self-Plagiarism (essay re-cycling): Self-Plagiarism is the act of
copying your own work submitted for one course assignment and
using it, in whole or in part, in another assignment for the same or a
different course. The use of entire papers or portions of papers for
two separate assignments is expressly prohibited. The Turnitin
system WILL detect when you have submitted the same material
twice. Do not make this mistake. It will result in an automatic F grade
for that assignment.

Weekly Schedule

See attachment.

Disclaimer:
Protest music and protest in general is emotionally charged and as such is often filled with
controversial and provocative language, ideas and imagery. In this class, we will read and listen
to lyrics that have profanity and watch videos that contain acts of violence. Students are
expected to show maturity and tolerance towards views that differ from their own but are
encouraged to express their own views as long as they respect the rights, beliefs and views of
others.
The use of shocking language and imagery in your work in this class is allowed, but I ask you to
be sensitive to other cultures, ideas, genders, preferences, and backgrounds of the people in
your class and others who may come into contact with your work. If youre not sure, please
come talk to me about it before you present your work to others.

Written Communication
Rubric