Blues for life
Characters:
Theme: Can/can’t. American English. Colloquial expressions.
Competencies
Competence in Linguistic Communication
Digital Competence
Personal, social and learning to learn competence
Competence in cultural awareness and expressions
Subjects and year by Educational System
Spain > English > 2nd ESO > Communication
Spain > English > 2nd ESO > Multilingualism
Spain > English > 2nd ESO > Interculturalism
Enunciation
Guess what the Blues says
Discover the hidden words under this Lucille Bogan’s Blues before listening to the song. Find out what subject she is talking about in the lyrics.
1. Listen to the song and fill in the missing words.
<https://www.letras.com/lucille-bogan/796288/> (retrieved on 12/04/2022)
Comin' a time, B.D. 1__________, they ain't gonna need no men
Comin' a time, B.D. women, they ain't gonna needs no 2______
Oh, the 3 ____ they treat us is a low down and 4______ thing
B.D. women you sure can't 5_________
B.D. 6________ you sure can't understand
They got a 7______ like a sweet angel² and they 8______ like a nach'l³ man
B.D. women, they all done 9_______ their thing
B.D. women, they all done learned their thing
They can lay their jive just like a natch'l man
B.D. women, B.D. women, you know they sure is rough
B.D. women, B.D. women, you know they sure is 10______
They are 11_______ up many a whisky and they sure can strut their stuff
B.D. women, you 12 ______ they work and they make their dough
B.D. women, you know they 13________ and they make their dough
And 14________ they get ready to spend it, they know the 15_______ where to go
BD WOMEN= antique term B.D. (bulldyke) Woman of the 1920s and 1930s, at a moment when the rise of a universal queer subject threatens to erase specific lesbian histories. Characterized by an aggressive stance and an enormousness that confronts rather than merely protests, Black B.D.
2. Talk about the lyrics
Observations and context
- Interdisciplinarily it can be studied together with the subject of Music.
- This activity opens the way for a discussion leading to a final research project.
- Classic female blues artist of the 1920s and 1930s whose outspoken lyrics deal with sexuality in an attention-grabbing way.
- Contemporaries include Gladys Bentley (1907-1960), Victoria Spivey (1906-1976), Memphis Minnie (1897-1973), Mamie Smith (1883-1946), Gertrude Ma Rainer (1882- 1939).
- Also: Saffire: The Uppity Blues Women (1990-2010), Ann Rabson (1945) and Asylum Street Spankers (1990-).
Description
In this activity, students will get to know one of the forerunners of the Blues, both as a composer and as a singer. They will observe the colloquial structures derived from some verb forms and will approach the American English of the beginning of the century. In this way, they will learn about the evolution of the language and will approach forms other than strictly academic English. In this case, it is approached through a revolutionary song, as it clearly talks about the concept of lesbianism and female empowerment.
Basic language units.