How Relevant Is Context?

[redbrunja]

This is probably not a surprise to most of my flist, but I'm a big believer in the Death of the Author, that a text should be taken on its own, without the creator stepping in to explain or justify his/her creative choices. (That said, I deliberately try not to know details about authors/actors/etc, because if I learn things I don't like it will forever taint the text for me).

Last night, I was listening to Not Ready To Make Nice:

(please give this song a listen, especially if you are not familiar with the Dixie Chicks or the specific background of this song).

What I was wondering was, does this song make any sense without the context of the Iraq War? If you don't know that the Dixie Chicks spoke out against Bush and had a lot of hate-mail because of it, what do you think this song is about? Even if you do know, does the song's overt political bias make it easier/harder to relate to?

Inquiring minds want to know. Speaking personally, while I greatly enjoy this song, I think it's cementation in one particular time period of American history is actually a weakness. I think Unsteady Ground:

has a much more nuanced touch with the politics of the Iraq War and For What It's Worth is a much more universal protest song.

Although, granted, neither one of those has the anger or righteousness of Not Ready To Make Nice, which I certainly don't want to devalue.

Comments

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Maybe it's because there's a certain universality to that kind of confessional songwriting. Even if you didn't have an ex named Matt who used to use your toothbrush and otherwise disregarded your stuff and, eventually, you, you as a human being can relate to the experience of a neglectful ex. It's kind of like a novel that way.

Agreed. And I think the experience of being hated by people who don't really know you has happened to many people (or at least, it happened to me as the result of some really bitchy 11-year-old girls), the Dixie Chicks put a little too much of there specific situation into the song to have it feel really relatable.